In one extraordinary video, he shouted and cursed at Shoigu and Gerasimov, demanding ammunition so his men could keep fighting as he stood in a field littered with the corpses of Wagner fighters. Prigozhin performed a U-turn and Wagner fought on, eventually capturing the city in late May. But a turning point came weeks later when he rejected an order for Wagner fighters to sign contracts placing them under the control of the defence ministry. Two weeks later, a video appeared to show Prigozhin welcoming his fighters to Belarus. Taking advantage of his political connections, Prigozhin was awarded major state contracts, becoming known as "Putin's chef" after catering for Kremlin events.

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Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Marina Lystseva, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Prigozhin, Putin, Christo Grozev, Bellingcat, Donald Trump, Stanislav Belkovsky, Mark Trevelyan, Cynthia Osterman, Nick Macfie Organizations: REUTERS, Marina, Defence, Staff, Kremlin, Financial Times, St, Thomson Locations: wreckages, Tver, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, Rostov, Belarus, St Petersburg, Africa, St Petersburg's, U.S, Niger, Prigozhin