The Gist After the death of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigoyine, some of his mercenaries decided to return to civilian life. But it’s not easy, especially on a psychological level.
Former mercenaries from Wagner, the late Yevgeny Prigozhin’s paramilitary group, are now forced to return to civilian life. A complicated process for men with problematic psychological profiles.
For Alexander Fyodorov, a former prisoner who was recruited by Wagner directly from prison to fight in Ukraine, “everything was wonderful, I loved it.” “But at the moment I don’t want to fight anymore,” he told AFP. Even before Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death, the British Ministry of Defense estimated that “the Wagner Group was probably moving towards a process of downsizing and reconfiguration,” according to our colleagues at TF1Info. A process accelerated by the death of the group’s leader.
“Most fighters have serious psychological problems”
After the failed march on Moscow on June 24, the Kremlin gave many mercenaries a choice: flee to Belarus, join the Russian army or return to civilian life. “The reintegration of veterans is very important because most fighters have severe psychological problems,” said Alexander Fyodorov. After his return from Ukraine, the 46-year-old is having discussions with a psychotherapist in a rehabilitation center in the town of Zhukovsky near Moscow.
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This structure, attached to the Russian Ministry of Defense, is committed to the social and psychological monitoring of those returning from the front. “They don’t see themselves here, they are always there,” psychologist Anna Kossyreva told our colleagues. “They haven’t always returned and we have to gradually learn to live in society.”