PSA: Wagner Group does not exist. They're a loose group of unrelated combatants that US thinks have relations with Russian government. There is no evidence that Dmitry Utkin is the head of Wagner. The only proof there is is a document acquired by BBC requesting equipment, which is signed by "D.U" which BBC claims "is believed" to be Dmitry Utkin. There is no evidence that Dmitry Utkin is a neo-Nazi. The article writes: (emphasis mine)
Mr Utkin, a former paratrooper in the Russian special forces, is reportedly the founder and overall commander of the Wagner group. He himself was formerly known as “Wagner” because of his alleged interest in Nazi Germany, which promoted the music of composer Richard Wagner.
There is no proof that the image of a man with Nazi tattoos is Dmitry Utkin. The image's original source is The Times, which claims the image is "purported to show Wagner’s leader Dmitry Utkin, a former Russian special forces commander".
So what do we have? An image of a man with Nazi tattoos, purported to be Dmitry Utkin, who is believed to be the head of Wagner group, which doesn't exist.
Libs claim this is the same level of a problem as the Azov Battalion, an explicit Nazi organization with explicit stated goal of establishing a fascist state in Ukraine, using explicit Nazi imagery, talking points, and politics, who are "training" child soldiers to ingrain fascist worldviews in them from an early age, who are officially and explicitly integrated into Ukraine's armed forces.
Also important to note two things, firstly many people who criticize Azov are not even in favor of Russian invasion, and even people who wholeheartedly agree with the invasion are not doing so out of a hatred for the Ukrainian people. They are not happy watching some random Ukrainian kid die. Meanwhile the Azov supporters use Wagner as a justification to make racial claims such as "The Russian people are predisposed to violence due to their eastern roots" and they do in fact advocate for collective punishment on Russians.
It's projection on every level.
