Today is International Children's Day, a day of celebration for children around the world. On this special day, many primary schools are closed and children gather together. At the same time, today is also the birthday of Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Regiment. He was born on June 1, 1961 in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), a fellow native of Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, his life experience is quite tortuous.
Prigozin graduated from a sports-focused boarding school in 1977 and originally dreamed of becoming a ski champion. However, due to the hardships and pressures of life, he had to give up this dream and become a ski instructor instead. Then, for involvement in criminal activities, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison in 1981 and was not released until 1990. After his release, he ran a hot dog stand with his stepfather, but by chance, he seized the opportunity after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Within a few years, he became a well-known upscale restaurant operator in St. Petersburg and the Moscow region, so he was known as "Chef Pu".
Prigozin got to know senior Russian officials, including Putin, by running a catering business. He has grown his career, expanding the restaurant industry and winning contracts to provide food supplies to the Russian military, schools and government departments, earning the trust of senior officials. From this, he gradually accumulated wealth and power, began to get involved in politics, and together with others formed a private armed group, the Wagner Legion. The organization attracted a number of seasoned military personnel and outlaws, provided generous treatment with its deep pockets, and produced a fierce and fierce force that was praised by senior officials.
From 2002, the Wagner Army began to participate in the conflict in Ukraine, and after several expansions, its strength gradually grew, and finally it won the battle in the urban area of Bakhmut. Although Chef Pu claimed that the Wagner Army had completely withdrawn from the city of Bakhmut on 1 June and that it had been taken over by regular troops, in reality most of the troops were still stationed about 5 kilometers east of the city.
On his birthday, Prigozhin personally went to the camp of the Wagner Regiment, inspected the soldiers, participated in their training, and even demonstrated a period of physical training himself. He later dined with members of the unit, but it was not revealed whether there would be a birthday dinner.