The Guardian has reported a European official as saying that Russia has deployed up to 20,000 mercenaries from Syria, Libya and other countries in its new offensive in Ukraine’s Donbas region.
The report said the Libyan and Syrian mercenaries were sent into battle with no heavy equipment or armored vehicles.
The European official said the estimates of mercenary involvement on the ground in eastern Ukraine range from 10,000 to 20,000 and that it was hard to break down that figure between Syrians, Libyans and other fighters recruited by the Russian mercenary company, the Wagner Group, which is still operating on the ground in Libya – areas under the control of Khalifa Haftar, especially in central and eastern regions.
“What I can tell you is that we did see some transfer from these areas, Syria and Libya, to the eastern Donbas region, and these guys are mainly used as a mass against the Ukrainian resistance,” the official said, adding that they are infantry and don’t have any heavy equipment or vehicles.
According to the report, Syrian ex-soldiers have been offered monthly salaries of between $600 and $3,000, depending on rank and experience, to fight in Ukraine, as Wagner Group is reported to have moved most of its soldiers who had been fighting in Libya to Ukraine.
“Last month, a Ukrainian military intelligence claim revealed that Russia had made a deal with the Moscow-backed Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar to send Libyan fighters.” The Guardian said.
