{"id":5850,"date":"2021-12-23T05:25:18","date_gmt":"2021-12-23T05:25:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mediateka.online\/learnrussian\/a-road-to-nowhere-russian-recruiters-are-mobilizing-mercenaries-for-a-trip-to-the-donbas-what-theyre-expected-to-do-there-remains-unclear.html"},"modified":"2021-12-23T05:25:18","modified_gmt":"2021-12-23T05:25:18","slug":"a-road-to-nowhere-russian-recruiters-are-mobilizing-mercenaries-for-a-trip-to-the-donbas-what-theyre-expected-to-do-there-remains-unclear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mediateka.online\/learnrussian\/a-road-to-nowhere-russian-recruiters-are-mobilizing-mercenaries-for-a-trip-to-the-donbas-what-theyre-expected-to-do-there-remains-unclear.html","title":{"rendered":"A road to nowhere Russian recruiters are mobilizing mercenaries for a \u2018trip to the Donbas.\u2019 What they\u2019re expected to do there remains unclear."},"content":{"rendered":"
The frontline positions of the People\u2019s Militia of the DNRValentin Sprinchak \/ TASS<\/figure>\n

Ukraine was the main topic of discussion during a video call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden in early December. According to American intelligence, Russia is preparing for a full-scale invasion of the Eastern European country. And by all appearances the virtual talks changed little: despite the threat of new sanctions. Moscow, according to the Pentagon, is continuing to mass troops near the border with Ukraine (open source analysts note that an \u201calarming quantity\u201d of equipment is being brought in, as well). Nevertheless, many experts still believe that an all-out war is unlikely. Against the backdrop of these tensions, Meduza\u2019s sources say that recruiters have started mobilizing mercenaries for a \u201ccombat trip to the Donbas.\u201d Whether or not they\u2019ll actually fight on the frontline remains unknown. Meduza special correspondent Liliya Yapparova<\/strong> spoke with the mercenaries themselves and discovered that they, too, are skeptical.<\/p>\n

Egor, a former soldier \u2014 who took part in the Russian campaign in Syria as a mercenary for the Wagner Group \u2014 got a call from a recruiter in the fall of 2021. \u201cHe said that a new project was underway,\u201d Egor remembered.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The recruiter (a former serviceman who, according to Egor, once rose high in the ranks) didn\u2019t represent a private military company (PMC) that Egor had heard of before \u2014 and he also didn\u2019t yet know where the combatants would be deployed, though he vaguely mentioned Africa. This didn\u2019t bother Egor \u2014 he was interested.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In early December, Egor finally met with the recruiter to hammer out the details. During the meeting, Egor found out the approximate salary (around 240,000 rubles, or $3,250, per month) and that the mercenaries would prepare for deployment at a training facility in Vesyoly, a rural town near Rostov-on-Don.<\/p>\n

\u201c[It\u2019s] a Defense Ministry base,\u201d Egor explained, telling Meduza that Russian mercenaries destined for eastern Ukraine were mobilized at this \u201ctried and tested\u201d training ground back in 2014. \u201cThere were only two [mercenary] training grounds \u2014 Vesyoly and Molkino,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Other Meduza sources who fought in eastern Ukraine also called the base in Vesyoly a training ground for mercenaries. \u201cSeven years ago they prepared the first wave [of military specialists sent to the Donbas] there,\u201d confirmed another Meduza source knowledgeable of these events.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Media reports have also described Vesyoly as \u201cthe first training base for the [Russian] PMC\u201d that later became known as the Wagner Group. Wagner\u2019s training camp was later moved to Molkino, a rural settlement in Russia\u2019s Krasnodar Krai.<\/p>\n

The recruiter mentioning Vesyoly was a red flag for Egor. \u201cI asked a specific question: I\u2019m a little worried about the location of your training facility; where [are you] deploying? He says: well, there<\/em>,\u201d Egor recalled. \u201cI told him: No way, that\u2019s it. This is the end [of the discussion]. I\u2019m not going there<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to Egor, there hasn\u2019t been such wide recruitment for a \u201cUkrainian deployment\u201d for several years now. \u201cI think right now is the most active [recruitment campaign] since 2014,\u201d he told Meduza (citing his own experience and conversations with other mercenaries). At the same time, he expressed doubts that a detachment would actually be sent to fight in Ukraine: \u201cAt the top they also understand that this is wild. A road to nowhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Meduza\u2019s sources, recruiters have been making offers to both professional mercenaries and \u201crank-and-file veterans\u201d of the war in eastern Ukraine since late November 2021. There\u2019s also ongoing recruitment targeting residents of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk \u201cpeople\u2019s republics\u201d (the territories in eastern Ukraine controlled by Russian-backed separatists; also known as the \u201cDNR\u201d and \u201cLNR\u201d) who have combat experience.<\/p>\n

Meduza heard about the search from a recruiter; combatants who took part in the hostilities in 2014\u20132014; military specialists from previous campaigns in Syria and African countries; members of the Union of Donbas Volunteers (SDD); and people from the army, intelligence services, and the Russian Interior Ministry\u2019s special forces (eight sources in total).<\/p>\n

One recruiter told Meduza that \u201cthe story began to come together\u201d three months ago. However, most of the specialists Meduza interviewed received offers in the last few weeks. Recruitment of DNR and LNR residents began a little early \u2014 \u201cabout a month ago,\u201d one source said.<\/p>\n

Of the dozen recruiters with whom Meduza\u2019s interviewees negotiated, only two are believed to be \u201cDefense Ministry representatives,\u201d according to the mercenaries. The rest are veterans from private military companies and volunteer groups, and SDD representatives. Other recruiters are allegedly offering \u201ccontracts with the Defense Ministry,\u201d but don\u2019t have the authority to do so, the mercenaries maintain.<\/p>\n

The Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to Meduza\u2019s request for comment prior to publication.<\/p>\n

\u2018Go and liberate Novorossiya\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

According to Meduza\u2019s sources, mercenaries are being recruited into several groups, each with its own organizers, candidate requirements, and terms.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Recruiters in Moscow are trying to mobilize around 120 \u201cRussian citizens with combat experience,\u201d who are prepared to spend three months in Donetsk, a mercenary familiar with the recruitment process told Meduza (his claims were confirmed by two other sources who turned down similar offers).<\/p>\n

According to these sources, the recruitment campaign was organized by people from the Russian Interior Ministry\u2019s Internal Troops, who served together in a particular brigade (Meduza knows the unit number; after the reforms in 2016, it became part of the Russian National Guard). \u201cPeople are being gathered through the brigade\u2019s former leadership,\u201d explained a source from the Interior Ministry, familiar with the mobilization process. \u201cThey once served [in the Internal Troops]. But when they offer up contracts, they quietly say that [they\u2019re coming] from the Defense Ministry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet another Meduza source, who fought in eastern Ukraine in 2014\u20132015, rejected an offer from Moscow recruiters \u2014 he couldn\u2019t find out who exactly they represented. \u201cThese people have nothing to do with the army, but the contract is offered by a defense ministry \u2014 only they won\u2019t specify which one. In the end they could simply say: let\u2019s sign a contract with the defense ministry of the Donetsk republic!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe requested information is outside of the purview of the agency,\u201d the Russian National Guard said in response to Meduza\u2019s questions about the alleged actions of its former officers. (As previously mentioned, the Russian Defense Ministry didn\u2019t not immediately respond to Meduza\u2019s inquiries).<\/p>\n

Two of Meduza\u2019s sources called the terms recruiters in Moscow were offering \u201cpractically fraudulent.\u201d \u201cThere were no [advances] \u2014 and in winter, you need 75,000 rubles [about $1,000] per person for equipment and everything,\u201d complained one of the mercenaries. The other source confirmed that advanced payments weren\u2019t on the table, and that the mercenaries were expected to \u201cfind all [their] gear locally.\u201d \u201cThose in the know understand that at this point you can start poking fun and laughing,\u201d he said. \u201c[The location] is in Donetsk \u2014 moveover, in barracks. And living in barracks\u2026Donetsk is full of places where you can station yourself properly: with a warm bathroom and a shower.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meduza\u2019s sources also found the salaries Moscow recruiters were offering implausibly high (the organizers recruiting for other \u201cdetachments\u201d told Meduza\u2019s interviewees different amounts). \u201cThey pay 160 [thousand rubles, or $2,170] at the barracks and 320 [thousand rubles, or $4,340] at the front \u2014 this is a lie, simply a lie,\u201d said a mercenary who refused the contract. \u201cThey\u2019re looking for idiots. The main requirement is that you come and plug a hole in the corps [the Russian-backed separatist forces].\u201d<\/p>\n

Candidates from Moscow weren\u2019t told the real aims of the \u201ctrip to Ukraine.\u201d \u201c[The recruiter] said: go and liberate Novorossiya,\u201d remembered one Meduza source, who declined the offer. \u201cI grinned and said: \u2018Are you nuts?\u2019 Then he said: \u2018We\u2019ll be told what the objectives are at X time\u2019.\u201d Another Meduza source tried to find out the group\u2019s mission through his own channels \u2014 and he\u2019s now convinced that the mercenaries will be sent to protect industrial facilities in the Donbas in the event of a military escalation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Dirlewanger brigades\u2019<\/h3>\n

In addition to the mobilization campaign in Moscow, there are two other detachments being formed on the ground in the LNR and DNR, four sources told Meduza.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor each [mercenary] they\u2019ve allotted $2,000 [as prepayment] \u2014 and they give it out directly in dollars,\u201d said a Meduza source familiar with the recruitment campaign there.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The People\u2019s Militia of the LNR (the unrecognized republic\u2019s defense ministry) didn\u2019t respond to Meduza\u2019s request for comment prior to publication.<\/p>\n

Two Meduza sources referred to the formations taking shape in the \u201cpeople\u2019s republics\u201d as \u201cDirlewanger brigades,\u201d because they actively enlist former inmates. \u201cThose [joining up] in Luhansk were in prison,\u201d said an individual personally acquainted with members of the new unit. \u201cAnd then suddenly they turned up in this detachment. They\u2019re real criminals, and besides that they\u2019re no spring chickens [aged 45 and up].\u201d<\/p>\n

For several weeks, the Luhansk detachment has already been stationed in barracks near the former\u00a0Lugansk Higher Military Aviation School of Navigators, according to a Meduza source who knows the mercenaries. \u201cAfter two weeks of being at the unit\u2019s location they were given a grand in green [U.S. dollars],\u201d the source said, adding that now the mercenaries are just waiting around. \u201cThey really think that soon [there will be] \u2018tanks from the West\u2019 and \u2018we\u2019ll meet at the English Channel\u2019.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

As was the case in Moscow, the Luhansk detachment\u2019s real objectives were left unsaid. \u201cOf course, they\u2019re telling me \u2018come visit us in Odessa in the spring\u2019,\u201d the Meduza source acquainted with the mercenaries recalled ironically. \u201cBut it\u2019s all fairy tales. Nobody knows anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018The frontline is a nightmare\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n

According to Meduza\u2019s sources, the Union of Donbas Volunteers (SDD) is also involved in the recruitment campaign. Three people told Meduza that allegedly, the SDD has notified its members about the recruitment campaign and asked them \u201cto draw up a list of reservists.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis call for reservists is in connection with the exacerbation [of the situation at the front] and the advance of Ukrainian troops into the territory of the Donbas,\u201d explained a source close to the SDD leadership. \u201cIn other words, the frontline is a nightmare and people will go there to protect the DNR and LNR themselves. And not to seize Ukraine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grigory, a veteran of the Donbas conflict and a member of the union, came to Moscow on December 13, having learned about the recruitment campaign \u201cthrough the SDD.\u201d He spent the next few days meeting with his former colleagues to discuss the possible \u201ctrip.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t just get behind the wheel for no reason and drive 2,000 kilometers [from home]: there was a direct command issued from the SDD,\u201d Grigory told Meduza on December 13. \u201cThere\u2019s really a [deployment] to the L\/DNR like in 2014, we all came [to Moscow] for this matter. We\u2019re all here and we already met with guys [from the union] today. [We\u2019ll find out] what the salaries are, who the commanders will be. There will be a few meetings \u2014 with top officials, without any intermediaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grigory wouldn\u2019t say who these \u201ctop officials\u201d were or which government agencies they represent \u2014 or if they even have anything to do with official structures. But after the second day of talks and meetings \u2014 not only with SDD representatives, but also with other recruiters \u2014 the veteran was desperate to know what was going on and what assignments awaited him in the Donbas. This time, Grigory doesn\u2019t want to fight; he reckons he\u2019ll get a job training other combatants. \u201cIt\u2019s not clear why all this is being done. It\u2019s not even clear who will command this entire parade over there,\u201d he admitted to Meduza on December 14.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe aren\u2019t involved in recruitment. We help those who have returned from there<\/em>,\u201d said SDD spokeswoman Maria Koleda.<\/p>\n

Dozens of advertisements have been posted online offering jobs with \u201cprivate security companies\u201d protecting \u201cfacilities abroad.\u201d The salaries range from 150,000 to 240,000 rubles ($2,000\u2013$3,250) per month.\u00a0<\/p>\n

These ads are often posted on Avito.ru, a Russian classified website (the same site where Ukrainian military counterintelligence posted jobs as part of a sting operation aimed at capturing suspected Wagner Group mercenaries).\u00a0Meduza sources said that Avito is being used to recruit mercenaries to fight not only in Ukraine, but also in Syria and countries in Africa.<\/p>\n

One such ad, promising \u201croving work\u201d in the \u201csecurity\u201d field, sought \u201cphysically fit\u201d candidates with international passports and \u201cexperience working in the security structures.\u201d (This wording is typical of job listings for mercenaries.)<\/p>\n

Meduza called the phone number listed in the advertisement and spoke to a recruiter, who said that the job was posted by \u201cOrchestra\u201d \u2014 a name sometimes used among mercenaries to refer to the Wagner PMC (\u201cWagner\u201d is believed to be the call sign of the mercenary group\u2019s chief commander, Dmitry Utkin \u2014 presumably in honor of German composer Richard Wagner. Hence the nickname \u201cOrchestra\u201d). The recruiter claimed they were hiring for a trip to Africa. \u201cWe aren\u2019t interested [in working] in Luhandonia,\u201d he said, referring to the LNR.<\/p>\n

A Meduza source familiar with the \u201cUkrainian\u201d recruitment campaign drew attention to another Avito ad, posted by a \u201cprivate security organization\u201d called Zvezda (\u201cStar\u201d).\u00a0<\/p>\n

Zvezda posted 50 identical ads tagged across 50 Russian regions, seeking candidates with \u201cno restrictions on travel abroad\u201d and \u201cexperience working in hotspots.\u201d According to the services NumBuster! and GetContact, the phone number Zvezda listed in its ads was saved under a variety of names, including \u201cPossibly PMC Wagner\u201d and \u201cArmy.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Meduza called the phone number, a recruiter explained that the company is involved in escorting cargo, as well as guarding both facilities abroad and \u201cVIPs, including top government officials.\u201d The recruiter said the job would involve travel to \u201cthird world countries\u201d and asked the person on the phone to come \u201cto the Krasnodar Krai, Molkino settlement\u201d (the location of the Wagner PMC\u2019s main base) to fill out paperwork.<\/p>\n

\u2018Nobody\u2019s raring to go\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n

None of Meduza\u2019s sources were sure why mercenaries are being recruited for a \u201ccombat trip to the Donbas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some sources believe that the would-be fighters in talks with Moscow recruiters and the SDD won\u2019t actually be sent into combat. \u201cAll of this will come to nothing,\u201d asserted a mercenary who declined the offer. \u201cIf there were a real escalation, they\u2019d have called specialists with [armored vehicles] and stuff,\u201d agreed another source.<\/p>\n

Three other Meduza sources speculated that the newly formed detachments might be sent to guard industrial facilities that are of interest to Russia \u2014 and be tasked with putting Donbas coal mines in order. One recruiter said that the formations would be engaged in eradicating \u201clocal banditry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, almost all of Meduza\u2019s interviewees admitted that in 2021, there are hardly any mercenaries in Russia who are prepared to go fight against Ukraine\u2019s Armed Forces in the Donbas. Of the eight people Meduza spoke to, only two are currently considering the possibility of repeating their 2014\u20132015 tours.<\/p>\n

Indeed, Meduza\u2019s sources believe that those who accepted the recruiters\u2019 offers likely have a rather low level of training. \u201cAll the rest are [on combat trips] in Africa or in the sands [Syria],\u201d explained a Russian security agency veteran familiar with the recruitment campaign. \u201cNobody\u2019s raring to go to the \u2018field of spoil tips\u2019 [the Donbas].\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey just don\u2019t want to go there, because there\u2019s a regular army [the Ukrainian Armed Forces]: it\u2019s difficult to fight against it,\u201d said a former Wagner Group mercenary. \u201cIf there\u2019s a regular army, there will be big losses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meduza\u2019s sources didn\u2019t want to speculate on whether or not the newly recruited detachments would be sent on real combat missions. At the same time, none of the mercenaries Meduza spoke said they believe that the Russian authorities are ready to engage in an all out war with Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Meduza is working for you And we need your support<\/h3>\n

Okay!<\/p>\n

Story by Liliya Yapparova<\/strong><\/p>\n

Abridged translation by Eilish Hart<\/strong><\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The frontline positions of the People\u2019s Militia of the DNRValentin Sprinchak \/ TASS Ukraine was the main topic of discussion during a video call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden in early December. According to American intelligence, Russia is preparing for a full-scale invasion of the Eastern European country. And by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[87],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latest-news-from-russia"],"yoast_head":"\nA road to nowhere Russian recruiters are mobilizing mercenaries for a \u2018trip to the Donbas.\u2019 What they\u2019re expected to do there remains unclear. - Learn Russian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mediateka.online\/learnrussian\/a-road-to-nowhere-russian-recruiters-are-mobilizing-mercenaries-for-a-trip-to-the-donbas-what-theyre-expected-to-do-there-remains-unclear.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A road to nowhere Russian recruiters are mobilizing mercenaries for a \u2018trip to the Donbas.\u2019 What they\u2019re expected to do there remains unclear. - Learn Russian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The frontline positions of the People\u2019s Militia of the DNRValentin Sprinchak \/ TASS Ukraine was the main topic of discussion during a video call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden in early December. According to American intelligence, Russia is preparing for a full-scale invasion of the Eastern European country. 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