Introduction

On the 23rd of June, following months of increasing tension between the Wagner Group and the Russian Ministry of Defence, Yevgeny Prigozhin launched his rebellion. Prigozhin's forces quickly took control of the head quarter's of Russia's Southern Military District in the city of Rostov-on-Don, after which an armoured column of Wagner troops advanced towards Moscow. In today's episode of Interregnum I asked Richard Seymour about Prighozin's background in crime and his early business ventures, the founding of the Wagner Group, the scope of its operations and its reputation for appalling violence. And we also talked about why Richard thinks Prighozin can accurately be described as a fascist. Finally, Richard addressed the claim, made by some analysts that the abortive rebellion actually leaves Putin in a stronger position.