Death is Our Business. Russian Mercenaries and the New Era of Private Warfare

In 2014, a well-trained, mysterious band of mercenaries arrived in Ukraine, part of Russia's first attempt to claim the country as its own. Upon ceasefire, the ‘Wagner Group’ faded back into shadow, only to reemerge in the Middle East, where they'd go toe-to-toe with the U.S., and in Africa, where they'd earn praise for ‘tough measures’ against insurgencies yet spark outrage for looting, torture, and civilian deaths. As Russia gained a foothold of influence abroad, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, known as ‘Putin's Chef,’ went from caterer to commander to single greatest threat Putin has faced in his over-twenty-year rule.