The provided text offers a comprehensive historical analysis of the Wagner Group, a Russian paramilitary organization, tracing its evolution from its inception in 2014 to its effective dissolution and absorption by the Russian state by 2025. It details Wagner's origins as a proxy force for Russian foreign policy, its crucial roles in conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, and its expansion into a military-business model across Africa. The text further outlines the group's transformation during the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, leading to its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin's public defiance and the dramatic June 2023 mutiny. Finally, it describes the Kremlin's retribution through the assassination of Wagner's leadership and the subsequent state absorption of its assets into new entities like the "Africa Corps" and the "Wagnerization" of the regular Russian military, solidifying a new era of state-controlled unconventional warfare.

Research done with the help of artificial intelligence, and presented by two AI-generated hosts.