2023-07-24 20:24:00
Thousands of mercenaries from the Russian private military group Wagner have arrived in Belarus since their brief rebellion in Russia in late June, a military watchdog group said on Monday.
Between 3,450 and 3,650 soldiers have arrived at a camp near Asipovichy, a town 140 miles north of the Ukrainian border, according to Belaruski Hajun, an activist group that tracks troop movement within the country.
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MOSCOW — Mercenaries from the Russian military company Wagner on Thursday began training with the Belarusian armed forces near the border…
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko welcomed Wagner’s forces to the country following brokering a deal between the Kremlin and mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin last month, ending the group’s failed revolt once morest Russian military authorities.
Wagner’s boss called the riot a “march for justice” to overthrow Russia’s top military leaders. The mercenaries faced little resistance and shot down at least six military helicopters and a fighter jet, killing several Russian soldiers.
The revolt represented the most serious threat to Russian President Vladimir Putin in his 23-year rule.
Satellite images showed that some 700 construction vehicles and equipment have also arrived in convoys from Wagner to Belarus, according to Belaruski Hajun.
Prigozhin registered a “real estate management company” in Belarus last week under the name Concord Management and Consulting. Documents analyzed by independent Belarusian media outlet reform.by showed that the company’s registered address was in the same village as Wagner’s mercenary camp.
Meanwhile, local authorities said on Monday that the mercenaries were still working with Belarusian troops, including in training camps near the border with Poland.
“Wagner fighters who have actually been in the thick of combat are passing on valuable information and experience to our military,” the Belarusian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Meeting Putin on Sunday, Lukashenko said Wagner’s troops were “stressing him out” by asking for “an excursion” to Poland.
For his part, Ukraine’s deputy intelligence director Vadym Skibitsky said there was no “direct threat” from Russian mercenaries in Belarus, but that kyiv will keep a close eye on them.
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