'These Guys are Really Notorious': CNN Military Analyst on Wagner Mercenaries in Ukraine
CNN's Don Lemon and Col. Cedric Leighton (Ret.) discuss reports that the Wagner Group -- made up of soldiers hired by Russia -- is now expected to be deployed in eastern Ukraine.
Just let me remind everyone that the Ukrainian military knows the Wagner mercs very well since the fall of Crimea, and how they spend the last nine years preparing for merc forces. And to add, Wagner was humiliated and wiped out by U.S marines( Not special forces groups) and Kurdish soldiers in 2016 and 2017.
The Wagner mercs are well known in Africa and are way less experienced than most people think. The vast majority of them do not seem to have any special forces training! They got their arses kicked very recently in northern Mozambique by Insurgents and ran home with their tails between their legs. They wouldn't stand up to any reasonable soldiers and definitely not special forces teams anywhere on the planet so I do not think that the Ukrainians will have any trouble with these guys at all. The only benefit of using them is the casualty story with Wagner will have better optics back home in Russia, as compared to the casualty rate from regular Russian conscripts which is starting to piss Russian moms right off. My view is that the more they use Wagner and the Chechens the more the world knows how badly the Russians are getting hammered!
The Wagner group called after the nickname of their creator consists mainly of guys from the poorest parts of Russia, and are said to be paid 2000-3000 $/month. They are also said to be ruthless, but not necessarily super efficient. A small group of US Special Forces made mash potatoes from a 10 times bigger bunch of Wagnerians. They are also known as the infamous "little green men" without insignia's that occupied the Crime without really having to fight. While the Azov militia is an official part of the Ukrainian armed forces, the WG are mercenaries, that can do dirty jobs for Moscow, while Putin can say stonefaced that no Russian armed forces are involved. Which is technically correct, but not in the facts.
Wagner is a strange and intriguing name for Russian mercenaries. I read that the family of Richard Wagner lifted Hitler from the ash heap when he was released from prison. Without their intervention Hitler and the Nazis might not have happened.
