Many in the audience only knew Yevgeny Prigozhin as the man in charge of army catering contracts; he was a middle-aged man with a shaven head and a gruff tone.
Although Prigozhin’s demeanor was disliked by many in the ministry, he made it plain that this wasn’t just any request. He informed the defense officials, referring to Vladimir Putin by the moniker “Papa” to emphasize his strong relationship with the president, “The orders come from Papa.” The Wagner group, Prigozhin’s army of contract soldiers, would fight in various African nations as well as in Ukraine and Syria. Its membership has grown to about 50,000, with tens of thousands of ex-offenders recruited from prisons all around Russia, frequently personally by Prigozhin.
