From Loyalty to Confrontation: The Prigozhin-Putin Saga and the Enigma of Private Military Companies in Russia

It is claimed that Prigozhin was unable to meet with Putin for two months prior to the march, despite multiple attempts. Putin's inner circle, which supports Shoigu, blocked these meetings. During this time, preparations were allegedly being made to dismantle part of Wagner, a private military company, and target Prigozhin himself. Prigozhin hoped that once the march began, Putin would side with him. However, Shoigu managed to reach Putin, who is known for being receptive to informationreceived by "ears". And only after Putin's conversation with a potential successor and Dyumin very close to him, the situation turned against Shoigu and Gerasimov.

Prigozhin is known for his loyalty to Putin, and one of the beneficiaries of his PMC Wagner is Dyumin, a former personal bodyguard of Putin. Putin initially made public promises to punish Prigozhin severely but later forgave him. These circumstances suggest that the reality may differ from what has been observed, potentially involving political maneuvers. This situation provides an opportunity for Putin to remove generals, including Shoigu, whom he couldn't remove under different circumstances due to personal relationships and obligations.

Shoigu is currently in isolation under the supervision of personal security from the FSO, the Federal Protective Service. Reports from Grozny state that 3,000 fighters from Chechnya are stationed in the Moscow region and are ready to carry out orders from Putin and Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya. The status of PMC Wagner remains unclear, but Akhmat, another group, is reportedly present and not leaving yet.

The case of Prigozhin's actions has demonstrated that it is possible to seize cities with millions of people, make demands to the country's top leadership, refuse to comply with lawful orders, and conduct armed marches in Moscow without facing consequences. This raises concerns about the potential actions of other private military companies or volunteer military units within Russia. The activities of PMCs are prohibited by Russian law, but there have been ongoing attempts to legalize them through legislative amendments, with lobbying efforts from political figures such as Sergei Mironov. The Russian government has consistently opposed these efforts, highlighting their contradiction with the Russian Constitution.

President Gorbachev of the USSR similarly did not respond in any way to the violation of state sovereignty by the union republics, their "parades of sovereignty," the establishment of republican armies, the seizure of union property and facilities, the dissolution of central government bodies, the blockade of Soviet Army garrisons, the seizure of weapon warehouses, and the issuance of various ultimatum demands to the central government.

The majority of the country's population was firmly against taking real actions to restore the country's sovereignty, repeating the mantra of "as long as there is no civil war."

It is well-known that the activities of private military companies in Russia are prohibited as they contradict the Russian Constitution and legislation. Mercenarism is recognized as a criminal offense in Russia. However, despite these regulations, the Kremlin and the Russian Ministry of Defense actively employ them, even within Russia, turning a blind eye to their illegality. This is primarily seen with the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC).

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