John Lechner and Jack Margolin: The Rise and Fall of Russia’s Wagner Group

On March 10, 2025, the Russia and Eurasia Program and the World Peace Foundation at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University held a conversation about the rise and fall of Russia’s Wagner Group with John Lechner, author of “Death is our Business: Russian Mercenaries and the New Era of Private Warfare” (2025) and Tufts alumnus Jack Margolin, author of “The Wagner Group: Inside Russia’s Mercenary Army” (2024). These two authors assessed the history of the Wagner Group and considered its implications for the international security landscape. Arik Burakovsky moderated the event, and visiting scholar Pavel Luzin and Alex de Waal were discussants.

(This post is republished from the Fletcher Russia & Eurasia Program’s YouTube Channel.)