In 2014, the Wagner Group helped train, organize and arm Russian-backed militias fighting for control of Ukraine’s Donbas region. Wagner operatives also participated in the fighting and in intelligence-gathering, according to CSIS, and were reportedly part of Russia’s seizure and annexation of Crimea. Wagner returned to Ukraine last year after Russia invaded. Russia’s military suffered significant losses, forcing it to rely on the group for help on the battlefield. Wagner in turn began recruiting from Russian prisons to bolster its ranks. Beginning last summer, the group has played a major role in Russian efforts to capture the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. Analysts say that while the town has little strategic value, Prigozhin has pushed the policy to show the Kremlin that Wagner is capable of gaining new territory. “Wagner is becoming a rival power center to the Russian military and other Russian ministries,” John Kirby, communications coordinator for the U.S. National Security Council, told reporters in January. But the organization, he said, has been making “military decisions based largely on what they will generate for Prigozhin in terms of positive publicity.” Kirby also said North Korea has been sending arms to Wagner for use in Ukraine, including via rail over the small border Pyongyang shares with Russia.