Syria, Wagner PMCs, Molkino, Syrian Stalingrad, losses…

The last six months of the war in Syria through the eyes of ordinary soldiers three Russian private military corporation

The coupe "Quiet Flows the Don" brand train, Dispatched in early November 2017 in Rostov-on-Don to Moscow, washed on a strange kind of medal. This award clearly looked through symbols hostile to each other eras - the Prussian Iron Cross, Soviet five-pointed star and the Order of the White Guard Ice campaign. Three men of different age, about 20, 35 and 45 years, in a drunken courage then do not fall; awards unnoticed had disappeared so quickly, that I did not have time to ask about the origin of the strange medals. And yet, the road was not a short, and little by little, first of scraps of phrases, later, when there were common tastes and memories, of frank conversations began to develop the whole picture.

The three men were returning from a six-month mission in Syria. Traveled contract, signed with the well-known private military company (PMC) "Wagner", although the document, of course, no this alias callsign, nor the names of its owner - Dmitry Utkin, which the, by the way, in the same November led restaurant holding Eugene Prigogine, also known as the "chef of the Kremlin". The official name of their organization to hire a report flatly refused, saying only, that the name keeps changing. Registered office is located in the suburban Krasnogorsk, Ilyinsky on highway, near the military camp Pavshino. Contract length - from three to six months. The contract is signed on the basis of PMCs in Molkino. Future fighter reads multi-page document, signed, and he remains in the company's office. It is strictly forbidden to communicate with the media, so they appear as Sergei Ts in this collective interview, Gennady F. Stepan M. These men were in the ranks of those, who put an end to the long war in the ancient lands of Syria.

6 in December 2017 the first news agency "Interfax" officially reported, citing the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, that "Syria is completely liberated from terrorists, All LIH gangs killed, released more than a thousand localities and reset in the basic communication ". But only in those triumphant was not a word about the contribution, which contributed to the victory of the rank and file fighters of private military companies.

The crossing of the Euphrates near the city of Deir ez-Zor

A photo: MIKHAIL ALAEDDIN / "RIA Novosti"

GATHERING PLACE: BASE "MOLKINO"

In the area of ​​the farm Molkino Krasnodar Territory is 10th separate brigade of special purpose GRU (in / hr 51532). It is directly adjacent to the base of PMC "Wagner". The soldiers gathered here from all over the country. First it had to pass a medical examination and various tests foster.

- Medkomyssyya bыla, but rather a visual selection: hands and feet on the ground - and more, - says Sergey. - Took all in a row, because PMCs carried the heavy losses Syria. More needed to run 3 km, wrung out 40-50 times (it was ranked as "good" or "excellent"). Many of these standards is not passed, but it has been credited.

Much more serious was considered a lie detector test. Polygraph passes each candidate. for example, of eight people in a group, which it was Gennady, successfully passed a lie detector only two, including himself. On what should be cut others, what kind of lies searched psychologists PMCs, Gennady still is not. But, in his opinion, This selection is not exactly concerned the criminal record of candidates.

Adopted by contract personnel distributed by "teams". It was not the army brigade in the traditional form, composition PMC teams consisted of everything from 300 to 400 human, depending on the challenges they face.

FLIGHT ROSTOV-ON-DON - DAMASCUS

Rostov-on-Don International Airport flew 25 April 2017-th, usual charter flight. Visa in the passport did not put, Only border guards stamped a mark on departure (and on his return - one more note on arrival). Syrian Border Service in the documents do not appear. Just "Boeing" flew a hundred and fifty men of PMCs, a day or two in the same manner arrived second half of the "team". In Damascus flying in civilian clothes, dressed already on the Syrian base, that is, among the desert. Military uniforms carried with them, each dressed to your taste. It is considered to be the most convenient form of desert SAS British Special Forces, best for durability and color, then there is a form of American special forces. So that meant Russian soldiers were no different from the Anglo-Saxon unit of commandos. Syrian form, in the unanimous opinion of the interlocutors, very poor quality.

OIL FIELD AL-Shair

Control at the airport in Damascus fighters PMCs do not pass, once seated on the buses - and more. Where?

- rank and file never say - where, how to go and what it will do, - says Stepan. - We were brought to the area of ​​the oil fields, Al-Shair, where they stayed for three months, and only three months later learned, as it's called. AT 40 kilometers northwest of Palmyra.

Landed directly in the mountain desert. Some did not have tents, in particular Sergei, and the first month and a half he lived "in the open air", although in the highlands at the time it was raining and there were cold. Only later issued breech tent. Just the place PMCs collected three brigades, that is, about a thousand people. What did you do?

- Mountain guarded, - says Gennady. - On the opposite mountain range sat spirits igilovtsy. Their all time Dolby aviation. Past us every day transportation of armored vehicles - tanks, BTR, BMP, only about 60 units. apparently, was preparing to attack.

In late August, the offensive began, and the men went to the mountains to the city Akerbat. We descended into the valley, one by one, taking the surrounding villages.

The fighting on the outskirts of the city Akerbatu

A photo: Maruf MOXAMAD / RIA Novosti '

"Storm" and the storming AKERBATA

Strike force teams PMCs in Syria between them is called the "assaults" " (with the accent on the last syllable). In addition to "Storm", there is still a platoon of heavy weapons, at its disposal mortars, PTUR (anti-tank guided missiles), heavy machine guns, AGS (automatic grenade launchers). fire support squad. Armored group with undetermined number of techniques - from one to several BMP armored personnel carriers and tanks, as anyone lucky. Combat brigade - about 200 human, they, who has at least some combat experience. The rest of the 100-150 - the so-called staff guys, obsluga, personal drivers commanders. Brigade commander retired employees of special forces (no human resources officer), army practically no.

- For example, the commander of our brigade, - says Gennady, - I asked the head of the Syrian and the gift offered several tanks, since for them the Arabs had no crews.

In the first attack are "storming", them platoon heavy weapons - mortars, heavy machine guns, PTUR etc.. The enemy arranged a trap, gave almost unimpeded take several suburban villages, and just before the town Akerbatom Brigade encountered the iron defense, which killed dozens of. The fighting here were specific, for every house. Finds documents igilovtsev (s transmit personal CHVK), across notebooks with prayers in Russian, on the list was a lot of Uzbek names.

- Akerbat took only Russian team PMCs, - says Sergey, According dvoe second kyvayut heads. - Syrians went to the final stage, to film for TV news. We even hid, not to fall into the frame, When the Syrians pose a heroic view.

Official reports of the capture of AKERBATA

so, PMC soldiers 'Wagner' claim, Akerbat that they captured on their own, Syrian government troops in the assault did not participate. The official version says exactly the opposite, the role of the PMC is not marked by word. According to the Russian Defense Ministry post, "September 2 2017 , the unit of the 4th Armored Division of the Syrian government forces, in cooperation with units of the 5th Corps volunteer assault troops and military Mukhabarat with the active support of VKS Russia liberated the strategically important city Akerbat, where he was "the last major center of resistance" terrorists of the banned organization in Russia IG ("Islamic State" - an international terrorist organization, forbidden in the Russian Federation).

The government "Rossiyskaya Gazeta" in those days to transmit messages commander of the Russian military group in Syria, Colonel-General Sergei Surovikina, which the, in particular, He noted, that "to support the Syrian army offensive in the area Akerbata Russian aircraft delivered 329 missile strikes with bomb, with the result that was destroyed 27 armored vehicles militants, 48 pickups mounted with large-caliber weapons and more 1000 militants ". The general also said, that igilovtsy Akerbate applied in an unprecedented number of suicide. According to him, "Destroyed daily by 15 to 25 militants with "suicide bomber's belt," and four or five "jihad-mobiles". But that, that the work done by the destruction of the guys from PMC "Wagner", general silent.

SPIRITS

- Almost all are igilovtsy shahid belt, - says Stepan. - Such a beautiful thing, accurate, low weight. Plastic box, flooded with transparent gel, where lots of metal balls. Because of this, no spirit captured, we did not take. One night we igilovtsy foolishly stuck to our village. Most, of course, we immediately bumped off, and a few some time drove through the village. one spirit, apparently badly wounded, long called for help, and then thundered explosion. The explosion collapsed nearby wall. It turns out, he was twenty meters from us. Morning carried purge, pit and threw grenades into cellars.

- Tactics spirits guileless: when there is a night skirmish, two or three selected Shaheed close and explode, - said Gennady. - It happened once or twice a week: to the wall of our shelter was selected and exploded igilovets. From these night raids killed many: eight - in a single battle, fifteen - in other, ten - in the third.

- All the locals by the time the village had left. Generally not faced with civilians, - assured Sergei.

Assault on the town of Deir al-Zor

A photo: MIKHAIL ALAEDDIN / "RIA Novosti"

DYeIR Economic DR: SYRIAN STALINGRAD

Took Akerbat PMCs and soldiers said: it's time to go home. Already dressed in civilian life, and suddenly the order: Machine in full gear. They traveled in the wilderness for about seven hours, We traveled three hundred kilometers to the east, and found themselves near the city of Deir ez-Zor. There were two Russian brigades PMCs, who have already crossed the Euphrates on pontoons, when there was an operation to unblock Dejr ez-Zor. We have set the task to liberate the island from the adjacent igilovtsev. About two months to perform this task, major losses suffered in this place, basically exploding mines.

As reports "RIA Novosti" Then saith: "The advanced units of the Syrian army 5 September broke a three-year blockade of Deir ez-Zor, and went on the offensive on the eastern outskirts of the city. After breaking through the Air Force base environment, and after knocking out terrorists from strategic heights in the south-west, government troops reached the western bank of the Euphrates River, and forced her, thereby displacing the groups of terrorists in the direction of the Iraqi border and creating a ring around the captured terrorist group "Islamic State" residential areas of Deir ez-Zor ".

Military expert Viktor Baranez commented on the lifting of the blockade to the Deir ez-Zor: "The city of Deir ez-Zor is of strategic importance for the further actions of terrorists in Syria. If he is taken, it will be a strategic defeat insurgents, and it will be for them in much the same, how in 1945 for the year of Hitler's Germany. It has the same meaning Deir Ezzor for igil. Defeat in Deir ez-Zor would mean, that actively combat the resistance of the terrorists will not longer be. This will not only military for them, but moral defeat, And the whole world ".

- What is the blockade of Deir ez-Zor - it should be understood again in the east, - said Sergey. - All those three years, who continued the blockade, cars with food and consumer goods products passed smoothly. Nobody suffered from hunger. even joking, Syrians say: we are at war for three years, fought, Russian came - and the war began.

- and the beginning of chaos, - Gennady laughed.

Meanwhile, according to Sergei, while spirits kept the defense in Al-Shaire, Kurds, sent here by the Americans, captured oil field. In late September igilovtsy moved on flank areas, and again the Russian brigade of PMCs had to return, to "wring the oil fields".

- At the top, apparently, deal, Kurds moved slightly, - says Sergey. - Judging by the inscriptions on oil rigs, part of them belonged to Europeans, part - Canadians. Canadians have lost most.

In late October, the deadline for trips fighters PMC "Wagner". In those days igilovtsy cut one of the two main roads, connecting the east with the west of Syria. They took on more of an extended - about 800 kilometers. Without adventure.

LOSSES

For the six months trip casualties totaled about one brigade 40 dead ("Two hundredth") and about 100 wounded ("Three hundred"). Another team more "lucky": their losses amounted to about 20 killed and 70 wounded. And in the third team in just the first two weeks we lost about 50 dead. Most died during the blockade of Deir ez-Zor. In this way, lost a tenth of the personnel, fifth part - is wounded.

MILITARY EQUIPMENT

- The loss would have been much less, - says Sergey, - if the supply of PMC group was not as APB, simply aho-of-ovym. Razbytыe bronevyky, three days lost five trucks, not on what was even transported personnel. And the loss of that high ... and all - stood! Collapse. Nobody going nowhere, God forbid, take out the wounded. And experience tells, that it's time to repot soldiers on armored vehicles, not designed for more than a 10 human. Although a year ago it was a decent equipment - and armament, and technology.

- It's just a beautiful TV picture: desert rod tanks in a row, for nimi idut BMP, it`s over them vertolёtы, - says Stepan. - In fact, technology has been very little. Our "armada" moved part of the foot, and some - at KAMAZ and "Ural". If ATGM hits the truck, the loss, of course, great. And this economy turned around our military Plyushkins huge losses. Some of the leaders, were responsible for military procurement teams, apparently, reported top, how much has been saved. And on the three brigades, that is, one and a half thousand people, issued a total of five night sights!

- And how are spirits? - says Stepan. - For example, at the position usually sit for 30-40 people, so here they are given two or three night sight. When spirits are in a night attack, they just barely see five "assaults", others do not see a damn. Fathers-commanders say: you shoot for outbreaks. And it needs to stick his head out of hiding. And get into the night sight igilovtsa, which is exactly playing the fool will not, immediately shot - and do not have time to notice the flash. So it turns out: Spirits see everything, and most of the "storms" blind. And because the huge loss.

- So how should it be? - says Sergey. - As in the special forces: every soldier a night sight and one of the three - Thermal. And so - for slaughter to lead people. But bosses PMCs, perhaps, It has a lot of money, but buying new equipment is not going to. Witnessed unit, armed trohlineykami, censure, machine guns Degtyarev, even machine guns "Maxim" were really. And I was at first trohlineyka. Vests times taking Kabul. Tanks all the "prize", that is captured from the Arabs, some resemble a colander. When he outraged his superiors, I heard: "Cute, what are you doing, a fairy tale hit? that gave, in order, and fight ".

Oil fields in Syria - the future place of work of PMCs soldiers, "Wagner"

A photo: Mikhail Voskresensky / "RIA Novosti"

MILITARY TRAINING

My interlocutors shared power, who fought on the side of Assad, their fighting qualities into three categories. The lowest place is occupied by the Syrians, average - the Fatimids (so in PMC called militants from Afghanistan) and Palestinians, Top - Russian.

- One of the Fatimids detachment seized a bridgehead, then relocated, and in their place we have taken up the government troops, immediately raised his flag, - said Sergey. - And our experienced fighter, five times visited in Syria, predicted: if the evening over the positions of the Syrian flag appears, One morning there will be a flag LIH. We took it as a joke. And in the morning we were awakened by frantic stamping: 300-400 Syrian soldiers fled screaming: "Tank came igilovsky!"And indeed: over the positions of government troops have been raised black banner.

- Russian - unrivaled fighters, especially in the defense, - says Stepan. - No one stood our attack, no one. For six months not a single enemy could not stand the "storm" attacks. Any Akerbate, or in the area of ​​Deir ez-Zor.

- Give us the technique LIH, - said Sergey, - would be released in two weeks the whole of Syria. impression, no one wants to win this war - not LIH, neither the Syrian army.

- And even the normally equipped Fatimids, - said Gennady. - I saw it myself, they drove through the desert "dzhihadki" on their bikes (so called igilovsky pickup weapons; differs from the "suicide bomber" - the same car, but stuffed with explosives). Inundated with this "dzhihadku" as nothing to do. Is not our technology, you can fight?! Our pturschiki go on foot, with the infantry, their three: setting one drags, two - on one rocket (each and weigh them 25 kilograms). There is also three LIH pturschikov, but on two motorcycles. On one motorcycle - Installation and two people, on the other - a third two missiles. Shmalnuli - and a moment later disappeared.

- Personally I am seen, both Dukhovskoy PTUR for 10 minutes knocked three cars - armored personnel carriers and two trucks, - says Sergey.

- The level of training of Syrian troops - is not that zero, a, can say, negative, - caught Gennady. - For example, of 60 armored vehicles, was brought, as already said,, in the area of ​​operations, - about 20 We were in the hands of the spirits igilovtsev, were in Akerbate. At all, tanks in Syria - is a challenge prize. Even a joke on this topic: Russia supplies tanks Syrians, Syrians pass them LIH, coming Russian, taken from tanks igilovtsev and receive a premium for it. Again peredaom Syrians - and it all starts over again, tank circulates in Syria, until it was burned.

- Personally, I have seen, as the Syrian special forces went into exploration, says Sergey. - Gone are seven kilometers and began to shout on the radio, they had run out of water, Several people were hitting (and the natives of Syria). And returned, not doing the job. Russian even had to endure the sun hit by the Arabs on itself. I agree with Gennady: zero level of training.

- All of Syria - that's about two Moscow region, Most - desert, - concludes Stepan. - It is enough to release a few enclaves and the valley - all! And let the spirits of the steppe hares ride through the desert as much as necessary. Work - for a month or two, but nobody needs it. Generals earn money war, debited tanks and weapons, LIH all trade leads almost officially.

PERSONNEL PMC "Wagner"

- Despite the fact that many PMCs soldiers served in the army and special forces, not be wrong, when I say, what 90% do not understand, where they were going, - says Sergey. - The desire to earn money otshibaet brain completely. therefore, got in nastoyaschuyu peredryahu, they say, that we did not come here to die, and earn. These are called "five hundred", ie deserters and objectors. They were immediately sent to the rigging team, that is, movers shells, etc..

- And for those living, who came to Syria, mostly losers, - says Gennady. - Usually, ex-cops, prisoners and military. About 40% personnel have stayed for serious crimes - murder, grapples and T. P. Fighters PMCs even each other so welcome: "Hi, Losers!"markedly, many months before the trip, or even years, they have booze, no drying out. Syria has banned drinking, head a little enlightened, give pledge to engage the rest of your life. Returned to Russia with a million in his pocket and break into such a peak, They creep up on a month basis with no pants.

EARNINGS "Gentlemen of Fortune"

A year or two ago, according to Sergei, PMC soldiers "Wagner" earned 310-350 rubles a month (240 thousands - salary plus 3 thousands a day - fighting). this spring had at 300 thousand (with salary 220 thousand), and a, who arrived in the fall, They earned an average of 200-210 thousand (salary fell to 150 thousand).

- What is the drop in earnings? - asked Stepan. - I think so, that steal all, they steal everything. At some point, people lose their heads and start to steal shamelessly. we suspect, that the top pay is still well, but just below invent different restrictions, that bind to a salary. for example, there is a clause in the contract, which says, that trip starting from the fourth month is considered long and additionally paid a thousand rubles for each day. When someone reminded of this point, the chief, I received such a response in the form of greatly softened: "oborzela? You and so many get!»

- And Insurance? - I ask. - What is the amount paid in case of death?

- understand, - says Sergey, - on the one rumored, Three and a half million, on the other - five million. Personally, in my contract about it, I did not see anything. Although he could and view: multi-contract, and also operates the principle of time pressure. It says,, you agree with the, that you can not take out a corpse. Also rumored, for slight injury pay 50 thousand, for heavier - up 300 thousand plus treatment. they say, Treatment was well - in the military hospitals of Rostov-on-Don, Kislovodsk, Petersburg, Moscow et al. Good conditions, highly qualified doctors. But there is one principle: no disabilities.

- I have an ambivalent attitude towards these private military companies, - added Stepan. - One side, deceive, and it's a shame. On the other, if you look at the situation as if from the outside, PMC withdraws from civilian life unwanted items (literally and fighter spoke about his comrades, and therefore, and himself. - A.Č.).

As it turned out, Sergei brought from Syria and a half million rubles. Uploaded debts, I bought a night sight, binoculars, warm clothes, other equipment on the little things. Money left to spare, only to Moscow to Krasnodar access.

- What kind of work remained in Syria? Protect oil field, factories. Throw in the attack will no longer be.

a source: http://www.sovsekretno.ru/articles/id/5801/