Messages about losses

In October, as a result of mortar shelling of the Russian base in the west of Syria, up to nine contractors from Russia died, reports The Wall Street Journal with reference to several sources familiar with the situation. According to them, the Russian authorities deny this information. The Ministry of Defense and the Foreign Ministry refused to comment. Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov told RBC that the publication in the Kremlin was not familiar with the publication.

Wjs clarifies that the dead Russians were not military personnel, but worked for a private security company, whose employees are involved in the "service" of the military base. Former security adviser, journalist Denis Korotkov explained to the publication that we are talking about a private military group of OSM, better known as the Wagner group, she got her name in honor of the pseudonym of their leader, a former Russian military who visited many hot spots.

The OSM group is an analogue of the American Blackwater , which the US authorities attract to participate in military operations. Groups such as Blackwater notes, the author of the article notes, allow solving military problems, avoiding diplomatic scandals in connection with the placement of the contingent abroad, and also protects against tension within the country, which can be caused by the death of military personnel.

Before the military operation in Syria, the “employees” of the Wagner PMC were sent to the east of Ukraine to participate in the fighting on the side of the separatists. According to Fontanka, which published a detailed journalistic investigation of the activities of this group, OSM is one of the most classified units located in the territories of the self -proclaimed republics in the Donbass. The commanders and fighters of the group never give interviews, it is almost impossible to find their photos from the war zone in social networks. Among the separatists, they received the sinister nickname "Cleaners."

It is the Wagner group that is attributed to the murder of the commander of the Ghost brigade Alexei Mozgovoy, who was considered one of the most independent and fundamental commanders among the separatists, as well as the chief of staff of the 4th Brigade of the DPR Alexander Bednov (Batman).

It is curious that the core of the Wagner PMC was formed in Syria in 2013, Russian managers of the private military company Moran Security Group gathered a detachment of almost 300 contractors whose tasks included “security deposits and oil pipelines” in the republic. The combat group was called the "Slavic Corps." However, they soon fell into a serious clash with the militants of the “Islamic state” (grouping is prohibited in Russia) and were forced to retreat. After this incident, the “corps” was disarmed and sent to Moscow.

Six months later, many of the former participants in the Slavic Corps met already in the Crimea, where they went as “green men”, and a year later, according to the publication, in eastern Ukraine they formed the backbone of a new super -regret combat group. In the summer of 2015, OSM went to Syria. According to Fontanka, the fighters of Wagner were transferred to the front of the military transport aircraft, along with military and humanitarian goods.

The last place of human service with the call sign “Wagner” was the second detachment of a separate brigade of the GRU special forces, which is deployed under Pskov. After dismissal to the reserve, he worked under a contract with Moran Security Group, in particular, guarded the courts from pirates attacks. In 2013, he was in Syria as part of the Slavic Corps. His colleagues say that he took the call sign of Wagner after the Syrian business trip: “He turned on the German theme. He imagined himself an Aryan. " They also note the impeccable reputation of Wagner.

After the start of the operation of Russian VKS in Syria, Vladimir Putin stated that the deployment of a ground group in the region is not planned. At the same time, in eastern Ukraine, the fighting practically came to naught, many “volunteers” who were not ready for peaceful life decided to go to Syria. By that time, all roads to the front were already trodden, finding them did not make up any problems.

Russians are going to fight in Syria both for earnings and for ideological reasons. The former, mainly, pour into the government forces of Bashar al -Assad, the second - into the international battalion of people's self -defense units (YPG) of the Syrian Kurds, in which anarchists, socialists and communists from around the world are consist.

“Of the numerous forces who fight against the“ Islamic state ”, Syrian Kurds work most quickly with volunteers. By and large, it was no matter what exactly to join: to the Iraqi Kurds, the Syrian or the Syrian army. But YPG was quick, so I went to them. In addition, Rozhava (Syrian Kurdistan - Ed.) Is of great importance in the struggle against IG. And, of course, the ideas of building socialism that YPG adhere to, ” says a volunteer from Russia, who is fighting in the ranks of the Syrian Kurds, as a man of left beliefs.