[News in War History] The 'Mercenaries' Who Threatened Putin's Throne and Why They Still Exist in the 21st Century

'Putin-ui Yori-sa' Turned Rebel Leader
Mercenaries Are One of the Oldest Professions in the World
Transformed into a Key Russian Business Since the Iraq War

The rebellion led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Group and one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest aides known as 'Putin's Chef,' has been temporarily settled, but the Russian political scene remains shaken. As President Putin has begun a full-scale crackdown to identify military officials involved in the rebellion, a massive purge is expected.

Along with the Wagner Group, it is known that there are about 30 private military companies (PMCs), or mercenary units, operating in Russia, which are expected to be absorbed into the Russian military or dismantled. Analysts suggest that if these mercenary units, which stood at the forefront of key Ukrainian battlefronts, are disbanded, the combat power of the Russian military will further weaken.

Unlike the United States, where the mercenary business has shrunk since the early 2000s, Russia's mercenary industry, which had recently emerged as a 'country of mercenaries,' is also expected to shrink rapidly following this rebellion. From the perspective of President Putin, who has ruled with an iron fist for over 20 years, a rebellion by mercenaries happening again is something he cannot tolerate.

Since some mercenary units throughout history have even overthrown their employers and seized power, the insecurity of the Putin regime is expected to continue for some time. In this article, we will look at the history of mercenaries who threatened Putin's iron-fisted rule in Russia, as well as the anticipated situations before and after the Wagner Group rebellion.

◆News: Putin enraged by 'loyal dog's' rebellion... Full-scale crackdown on rebellion sympathizers begins

General Sergey Surovikin, arrested on charges of involvement in Prigozhin's rebellion [Image source=AP·Yonhap News]

Let's start with the news. On the 28th (local time), the Moscow Times, a Russian local media outlet, cited multiple anonymous Russian Defense Ministry officials reporting that "General Surovikin was arrested on charges of involvement in the Wagner military rebellion." According to some sources, General Surovikin sided with Prigozhin during the rebellion period, the Moscow Times reported.

Rumors of General Surovikin's arrest have spread widely inside and outside Russia. Vladimir Romanov, a well-known Russian military blogger, claimed that General Surovikin was detained on the 25th, the day after the Wagner rebellion was quelled. He stated, "General Surovikin is currently imprisoned at the Lefortovo prison near Moscow." Since then, General Surovikin has not appeared in public and is reportedly out of contact with his family.

Western media have also reported indications of General Surovikin's involvement in Prigozhin's rebellion. The New York Times (NYT), citing senior U.S. officials, reported that "Surovikin was aware of the Wagner Group's rebellion plans in advance, and U.S. intelligence agencies are investigating whether he actually assisted in the rebellion."

There are already reports that, under President Putin's orders, surveillance and investigations of key military figures in Russia have intensified. Putin's anger shows no sign of abating, and these measures are interpreted as efforts to prevent another military rebellion.

◆History 1: Mercenaries, one of the oldest professions... Frequent rebellions against employers

The Swiss Guard serving at the Vatican. They wear the uniform of 16th-century Swiss mercenaries while on duty. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Mercenaries, who shook Russia like this, are considered one of the oldest professions in the world. Regulations concerning mercenaries are even found in the ancient Babylonian 'Code of Hammurabi,' believed to have been created around 1750 BC, indicating that the profession of mercenary has existed for thousands of years.

Especially in ancient and medieval times, when state finances were poor and budgets insufficient to maintain standing armies of hundreds of thousands as today, many states operated mercenaries on a contract basis, hiring them only during wars and dismissing them afterward. This was common across almost all civilizations, East and West alike.

Although records of mercenaries are scarce in Eastern history, where centralized governments emerged early, mercenaries often appeared during times of national turmoil. Many heroes featured in the familiar 3rd-century Chinese historical text 'Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi)' were, by today's standards, mercenary unit commanders. A representative example is Liu Bei, the protagonist of the novel 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms.'

Historically, Liu Bei is depicted as a 'guest general'?a term for mercenary commanders?before founding the Shu Han kingdom, and is portrayed as a highly strategic figure. He was repeatedly employed by warlords competing for supremacy in China at the time, such as Gongsun Zan, Tao Qian, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, and Liu Biao, eventually succeeding in establishing his own power base.

In the West, where frequent wars occurred among fragmented states, the mercenary system was much more active. Records of formal mercenary employment appear from the 5th century BC during wars between Persia and Greek allied forces. The Roman Empire also expanded through numerous mercenaries but ultimately fell to Odoacer, a Germanic mercenary leader.

The image of Henri Dunant, a Swiss who founded the Red Cross.

Entering the medieval period, the ancient mercenary system, mainly organized by tribes or clans, transformed into corporate forms like today. From the 15th century, mercenary companies began to emerge primarily in Italy. These companies hired mercenaries ranging from dozens to thousands, deploying them in individual wars or as guards for royal families and nobles, growing in influence.

Some war states even developed mercenary business as a primary industry. A representative example is the Landgraviate of Hessen-Kassel, located in central Germany near Switzerland. Swiss mercenaries had been renowned for their bravery since the 13th century, and Hessen-Kassel was a complete military state where over 10% of the population, mostly young men, served as mercenaries abroad. During the American Revolutionary War, tens of thousands of men from Hessen-Kassel were hired by the British army and sent to the American continent.

This mercenary business later significantly influenced the founding of the Red Cross. Henri Dunant, born in Geneva, Switzerland, witnessed the horrific conditions of Swiss mercenaries deployed in the Crimean War and the Italian Unification War from the 1850s to 1860s and founded the Red Cross, an organization providing aid to wounded soldiers regardless of nationality.

◆History 2: Decline of U.S. mercenary companies after Iraq War, rapid growth of Russian mercenary companies

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

After World Wars I and II, mercenary activities declined significantly as localized conflicts were mostly confined to regions like the Middle East. Until the early 21st century, mercenary businesses mainly developed around American companies.

These mercenary companies, now called Private Military Companies (PMCs), began to be employed for combat deployment during wars, protection of key figures, and maintaining security in occupied territories. Notably, companies like 'Blackwater,' established in 1997 and active around the Iraq War, gained fame.

However, in September 2007, Blackwater mercenaries indiscriminately opened fire on a road in downtown Baghdad, killing hundreds of civilians. Following this incident, the U.S. PMC business sharply declined. Numerous reports of hundreds of shootings by U.S. PMCs across Iraq and the Middle East, resulting in many civilian deaths, led many companies to change their names or nationalities, making it difficult to operate openly in the U.S.

In this context, Russian mercenary companies, supported by the Putin regime, made significant advances. Russian mercenary units have entered civil wars in the Middle East, including Iraq and Syria, as well as various African countries, leading to the proliferation of about 30 large and small mercenary companies, including the Wagner Group. They have mainly received mining rights for oil and natural resources in exchange for supporting rebel or government forces in these countries, with the Russian government deeply involved in their activities. There are allegations that some of the profits and assets generated were diverted as political funds to extend Putin's regime.

The largest of these, the Wagner Group, grew into a large mercenary company with over 50,000 troops operating in about 30 countries across the Middle East and Africa. Its leader, Prigozhin, was originally the CEO of Concorde Catering, Russia's largest catering company, and was known as Putin's personal chef even before Putin came to power.

In 2013, just before Russia's forced annexation of Crimea, Prigozhin established the Wagner Group as a subsidiary of Concorde Catering. He teamed up with Dmitry Utkin, a veteran soldier, to gather former military personnel, mercenaries, and criminals from various countries to form the mercenary company. They expanded their business worldwide, receiving direct support of heavy weapons such as tanks, armored vehicles, and fighter jets from the Russian military. During the current war in Ukraine, Wagner Group mercenaries have led the front lines.

◆Implication: Russia's political instability and the increasingly uncertain Ukraine war

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

The rebellion by Prigozhin and the Wagner Group, who have served as Putin's loyal dogs and financial backers, is interpreted as a significant shock to the Putin regime, which has boasted iron-fisted rule for over 20 years. Even if the regime does not collapse immediately, its vulnerabilities have been exposed, meaning the Putin regime could face more rebellions and challenges both inside and outside Russia.

Although it ended in failure, the military rebellion sparked by the Wagner Group in just one day had a huge impact. The fact that the Wagner Group, with only about 4,000 troops, advanced northward, entered the major city of Rostov-on-Don?where tactical nuclear weapons were stored?without bloodshed, and advanced to within 200 km of Moscow without any resistance, leaving all of Russia defenseless for a day, is a major shock to the Putin regime.

Concerns are also rising that the Putin regime may prolong the war with Ukraine to resolve this internal division. To emphasize the wartime situation, promote national unity, and demonstrate the regime's solidity, the war must continue. We hope that Russia's political instability will be resolved soon and that the path to peace negotiations will open.