The use of Russian PMCs in Syria. In Russia, PMCs have been legalized and recruitment is in full swing

Among themselves, they call Syria a "sandbox". Because sand. Lots of sand. And the heat is plus fifty. They know: if something happens - no one will save. And their bones will forever rot under this burning sun, and the jackals will do the rest. The contract states: non-return of cargo-200 home. Too expensive.

On Sergey's phone, instead of ringing, there is a cheerful melody:

“Our armored personnel carrier is all wrinkled, but quite so on the move, it beats the damned ISIS, knocks out the spirit of the bastards. Behind the plain there are immediately mountains, through the mountains there is a pass, and behind it stands Palmyra, I have been her all my life ... "

The ending is quite in the style of Cord, so I will not bring it here.

Sergei is in his early thirties, a former lawyer from Donetsk, but he hasn't worked in his specialty for four years because of the war. First - the one in Ukraine. Then here - in Syria. War without rules. So it is unlikely that he will need beautiful legal terms: they will not save you in battle.

“The deed is done, only a few hours to get ready, we helped to break the shackles of the Syrian falcons. Let the tourists come - Damascus, Palmyra, it doesn't matter. Money, women and wine are waiting for us at home ”- the bad boys in the homemade songs of the current“ luck hunters ”tend to seem even worse than they are.

I ask Sergey to let me listen to other hits of this Syrian war- he throws me a re-sung "Cuckoo" by Viktor Tsoi through the messenger. The chorus is almost unchanged. "My hand turned into a fist..."

I can imagine what Sergey might look like in real life: short, wiry, in a shabby green camouflage, on the index finger of his right hand there is an unhealed callus - from the trigger. And on the shoulder, too, a bruise - from a machine gun. That's just rewards for mercenaries are not provided.

We are not given awards. This is among the Cossacks - titles, orders, they love this. And they don't know how to fight. The guys ask one newcomer: “Do you even understand where you got to?” He looks like a fool: "What's wrong - you saw the car of the Islamists and throw a grenade at it." Damn, but I saw the car - tick away from it as soon as possible. She carries a ton of explosives.

Jihad mobile?

There are two types. Jihad Mobile and Inghimasi are such suicide squads that at first fight like ordinary soldiers, and when they run out of ammunition, they activate the martyr's belt. They explode, dying and taking everyone near them with them. Well this is Hiroshima and Nagasaki, how much TNT is hung on them! Their task, these crazy fanatics, is to die on the battlefield. They go for this.

Our purpose of the trip is to earn money. No patriotism. True, the Cossacks come up with some beautiful fairy tales for themselves - for example, that they go to study Orthodoxy in extreme conditions, while Syria is the cradle of Christianity, but this is also an excuse. Mostly people go to earn money. It's just that not everyone admits it openly and honestly. This is fine. We also went to earn money, not to kill. We, as recruiters, were told: you will protect communications, checkpoints, oil rigs, restore factories, and you will arrive at the place - both! - and in the assault battalion.

Did you make a contract?

If you can call it that. Let's just say: I signed the agreement. There is a list of what we must do, there are duties, but no rights. If you violate some point, for example, you drink on the front line, then you get money. Fine all the division. Although they drink little - in such heat. But vodka in Syria is good.

Where do recruiters find their potential "clients"?

Recruiters have been working in Donbass since the age of 14. But in the early years, few left. Firstly, no one even knew about Syria, and secondly, in the DPR they fought for the idea, for the salvation of the Russian world. It was then vulgarized by everyone. Now there is not clear that - whether the world, or war. Many Russian volunteers returned home. The militias dispersed too. And what we can do is nothing but to fight. If you serve in Donetsk now, you get 15,000 rubles. Here I was offered 150,000 a month, plus combat, plus for going out, and so on. I have a wife on maternity leave, two children, a son and a daughter, my parents are old. I don't make that much in a year. Even if you imagine that they will cheat and pay less, it is still better than nothing.

Do they often cheat?

- Who will behave. In general, there are two large private military companies on the market today - these are Dmitry Utkin's Wagner PMC and Turan PMC, a Muslim battalion. The very first was the "Slavic Corps", but now it is no more. There are also subcontractors, intermediaries who also recruit people. They have nothing to do with the official Russian military structures. How legal they are is also none of my business; in my opinion, they are issued through left-wing states, they are registered and licensed there - in South Africa, for example. I know that there were such organizations that offered 240 thousand rubles a month, but in reality they all get about the same - 150.

I won’t say that they just threw someone so hard: we have word of mouth, today they will throw it - tomorrow no one will go. We are all the same in this circle, everyone, in principle, knows everyone. When I was in the camp where I was trained, they paid an additional 2-3 thousand daily allowances, you can also raise a thousand bucks a month.

And not go anywhere at all?

Personally, I didn't know them. But the preparation is so-so, to be honest. A shooting range, a training ground, an educational and material part ... Among other things, they talk about the traditions of the Syrian people, such as not to accidentally violate them ... Personally, knowing how to survive in the desert helped me: there are a lot of creeping reptiles, so you take four pegs, you drive them into the sand, tie them with a woolen square thread - not a single scorpion through this wool thread won't get through. They feel them and are afraid for some reason.

How did you get to Syria - by military aircraft? Civil?

Charter. To Latakia. We had a legend that we were peaceful builders, or something. There the sea is warm, good, but they didn’t let them go for walks separately. Although many a couple of times ran away to swim.

Disobeyed orders?

Yes, what kind of order is there ... You still don’t really know who, for the most part, goes there. It is in the Ministry of Defense that they will not sign a contract with a person with a tarnished biography. And we also had previous convictions, and those who did not find work at home, roamed around without money, former volunteers who came to Rostov for military training, militias, even ethnic Ukrainians were, including those who fought against the Donbass. Sometimes you see such a person in front of you - and you just go nuts.

Nothing sacred?

Not at all. Everything is fine. It's amazing how life can turn. When the very first fighters were sent there, there was a strict selection, they say, even a competition. Now everyone is being taken. Personally, I saw an amputee, a man without an arm, he is a machine gunner by profession. How can he shoot? .. It seems to me that recently recruiters are paid for the number of recruits, and not for the quality. That's why there are so many stupid losses.

Those Cossacks whom the ISIS executed - they were from the May group. 150 people then arrived - in the first battle they received 19 "cargo-200" ... It's just that the numbers are hiding, the minimum information is leaking to the media about what is happening. Those who were the last to arrive, they had such preparation that it is immediately clear: the suicide bombers arrived.

How much are relatives of the dead and wounded paid? Is it in the contract?

Three million - for the dead, 900 thousand - for the wound. But in fact, we have such insurance that if you get hurt, and you don’t have a bulletproof vest or a helmet, then they may not pay anything. A bronik with equipment weighs 18 kg. Who will carry him around in such heat?! This is also fined. But the relatives of those two whose heads were cut off will make all the due payments for sure, because the press made a fuss.

They are heroes! They did not swear allegiance to ISIS (banned in Russia - E.K.) ...

Don't make me swear. They freaked out. Because normal boys would not have surrendered alive.

What a nightmare - with this cutting off heads!

Ours are also cut off. And what about dragging the dead in the desert on yourself? At first, 5,000 rubles were paid for one head of an ISIS member. The guys dragged a whole bunch of them ... Therefore, they dropped the price - we need to stop terrifying the local population - lately they have been paying like a thousand. I'm definitely not interested, because I don't do it myself.

And these were definitely Islamist fanatics, and not civilians?

I'm telling you exactly. Syria is now divided into zones. Pink - Damascus, Latakia and surroundings. You can't touch anyone there. There is also a gray zone - back and forth, and the most terrible - black, where we stand. There are no peaceful people there. All enemies.

I don’t understand why it’s impossible to launch air strikes on these countless ISIS villages without using infantry, since such crazy human losses?

This is just very clear. The use of infantry, soldiers, is much cheaper than aviation. It's always been that way. Soldiers are meat.

AT old times there were rules in the armies of all countries: for the first three days, the city, captured by the troops, is given at the mercy of the winners. Is there such a thing now?

I guess, yes. Everything you find in the liberated villages is yours. You only need to pay money. These fanatics have their own - gold dinars, silver dirhams, copper fakes ... Although they are made of pure gold, you cannot take them with you. They bear the symbols of ISIS - the "Islamic State" (banned in Russia), their possession and distribution is equated with a criminal offense and support for terrorism. Who needs such a headache?

What about after the fight? How are you resting? You are not an official army, so concerts of famous guest performers from Moscow are not supposed to be for you? ..

Yes, it gets boring too. But you can buy a wife. A virgin from a good family costs 100 bucks. For a year. Kalyma type. If you take forever, then it is 1500-2000 dollars. It's easier to buy there than to look here. I know guys who straightened documents for such brides and then took them with them to Russia. In general, women in the war are very helpful - at least by brightening up our life. But basically only officers can afford them.

Are they well fed?

They are fed to death. But water is tight. There is technical and there is drinking. But technical drink is not allowed. And drinking is not enough.

How about weapons?

That's the problem with weapons. The equipment is old, dead, shaggy years ... They also give out Chinese machine guns. It is clear that people chip in and buy weapons themselves - it’s a pleasure to live, and since cash is not very good, many spend so-called cigarette money on this: about 100-200 dollars a month.

Is the salary transferred to the card?

As you wish. Usually on a card to your wife or someone you say yes.

After the death, does the non-disclosure agreement also apply to relatives?

In fact yes. They are warned that it is better not to exaggerate this topic if they want to be paid for everything. In the end, the man went there voluntarily, no one forced him. It is clear that no one will drag his corpse back to his homeland, because it is expensive, and there is no special point. But the three million that will be given for the dead, the living will earn in two years only ...

Do you consider yourself a mercenary?

No. I was placed in such conditions. In the Donbass in the ranks from the very beginning of hostilities and almost to the very end. I had convictions. And I personally know those who would never agree to die for money - only for the Motherland and the idea. But gradually nothing remained of the ideas, and the war turned into business as usual. Ordinary people also have to adapt. But I did not betray myself.

And who was betrayed?

There was a case. Our guys were on fire. It happened. And they burned for a long time. It was terrible to watch them suffer. It was necessary to shoot them, and it would have been merciful, but I could not ... Perhaps this can be considered a betrayal.

Do you believe in God?

- I do not know. I must believe in something. In good, in bad. Don't know. All I know is that killing is wrong. And I do not like it.

Simple bookkeeping

One of the leaders of a private military company gave us a comment on condition of anonymity.

“I believe that in fact there is no criminal offense here. Yes, an article hangs over all PMC members - participation in illegal armed formations, or even the leadership of an illegal armed formation, up to 20 years in prison, but let's think about the fact that now a new type of war is being fought all over the world. Recall the experience of the same Americans, all their operations in Iraq or Afghanistan are mainly carried out by PMCs. The French Foreign Legion is generally supported by the government. So it's stupid to pretend to be naive young ladies and say that we shouldn't have this, because it's bad.

This is business. We will not capture the market, others will take our place. But while Russian PMCs are beginning to gradually push the Western ones: because ours are undemanding and take on everything, yes, they are deceived. But cheating is also a life experience.

According to the rates, we get about 5 thousand dollars per person per month. According to the contract, you pay 2000 plus 500 for related expenses. There remains a net profit - 2500, multiplied by the number of fighters.

In modern society, the value of human life is constantly growing. This trend is especially noticeable in the countries of the First World. Ordinary Americans and Europeans do not want to fight anymore. Moreover, voters in Western countries perceive reports of the death of their own soldiers extremely negatively, especially since wars are usually fought in some distant, incomprehensible countries, thousands of kilometers from their home.

But you have to fight. Our world is not becoming safer, and no one thought to cancel the national interests of states. That's why ordinary guys from Iowa and Texas have to put on military uniforms and go somewhere far away to defend democratic values ​​... In a word, everything is like in the good old days - take up the White Man's burden. Many of them return home covered in the Stars and Stripes. And politicians have to explain to the people why they should sacrifice their sons for obscure geopolitical games... And it becomes more and more difficult to do this every year.

A way out of this situation was found in the middle of the last century, when British Colonel David Sterling created the first private military company - Watchguard International. The idea turned out to be brilliant - according to the British The Economist, in 2012 the volume of the market for services provided by PMCs already amounted to $ 100 billion. Sometimes even larger numbers are called.

In recent years, mercenaries have been gradually replacing the regular army from the battlefield. And this can already be safely called a trend. Another unconditional trend was the appearance of a huge number of Russian surnames in the lists of private military companies ...

It would not be an exaggeration to say that PMCs have become a modern reincarnation of the phenomenon as old as the world - mercenarism, which probably arose even at the time of the emergence of the first states. The mercenary, as a rule, only cares about the "cash", he does not care about the political, ideological or national aspects of the war in which he is a participant. Often, "wild geese" are not at all citizens of the country on whose territory hostilities are taking place, although options are possible here.

There is one more important point. Private military companies are a true symbol of the "hybridization" of modern warfare. They not only enable the state to hide combat losses from its own people, but also allow it, if necessary, to simply “freeze” and hide its participation in a particular conflict. "Ihtamnet", in short ...

What is a PMC and what are they for?

A private military company is a commercial organization that offers various military services to customers for a fee, which may include:

• protection and protection of objects or territories;
• providing logistics in the zones of military conflicts;
• intelligence gathering;
• military training;
• planning of military operations.

But in fact, the list of works to which PMCs are involved is much wider.

For example, about ten years ago, "private traders" were actively involved in the fight against piracy. Then it became a real "headache" for trading companies and shipowners. It was much more profitable for them to hire armed guards than to pay a ransom for the ship and crew to modern filibusters. By the way, PMCs are also usually involved in the release of hostages from pirate captivity and paying a ransom.

Mine clearance services have become another area of ​​activity for military companies in recent years. Also, PMC specialists are often engaged in the repair and maintenance of military equipment, including complex computer systems, they guard embassies and prisons, recruit recruits, and even provide military translator services. In recent years, mercenaries have increasingly been directly involved in combat operations.

Western states are increasingly outsourcing warfare. For example, in peacekeeping operations in recent years, private military companies are considered absolutely equal legal entities along with regular army units. It should be understood that modern PMCs bear little resemblance to a bunch of dashing mercenaries of the 70-80s, the times of Angola and Mozambique. Today, the richest Western corporations are investing in this profitable business, PMCs are closely connected with the establishment, and often they are led by former high-ranking officials or retired generals.

Western private military companies are structures tightly controlled by the state that work in the interests of this very state. This is the main difference between modern PMCs and medieval mercenary units. Theoretically, all responsibility for the actions of a particular PMC (including for any offenses) lies with the state-employer of this company. However, as a rule, such responsibility is very vague, and it is much easier to get away from it than from crimes committed by "regulars".

Private military companies appeared in Russia several decades later than in the West. Despite this, this business is also actively developing in our country, and there are serious prerequisites for this: huge amount people with military experience and the general poverty of the population. Therefore, Russian "soldiers of fortune" are cheap, they are very attractive in the world market in terms of "price / quality" ratio. You can also add that the domestic approach to the use of PMCs is significantly different from the Western one, but more on this will be discussed below.

Strengths and weaknesses of modern "soldiers of fortune"

Why do states increasingly give preference to private military companies, what are their advantages over the good old army? There are really a lot of “buns” here, and they are tastier than one another.

1. As mentioned above, the use of PMCs does not cause the discontent among the population, which inevitably generates the sending of regular troops to war. Well, they say, mercenaries, what to take from them, they themselves go for a long ruble;
2. Often the losses of military companies are not taken into account at all in official reports. The Americans, for example, have long had a rigid and transparent system for accounting for the losses of the armed forces. The data is posted on a special website, where combat and non-combat losses are indicated, the information is constantly updated. But you will never find mercenaries in these lists;
3. Private military companies are easy-going, capable of rapid deployment, they have a minimum of bureaucracy;
4. As a rule, PMCs cost the state less than a regular army. For small missions, it is much more profitable to hire “private traders” than to mobilize, deploy garrisons and send troops;
5. High professionalism. Usually, when recruiting personnel in PMCs, preference is given to people who have completed military service and have combat experience. Private military companies often hire specialists who have spent many years military service, so that in terms of professionalism, PMCs often even surpass regular troops.

However, private military companies also have significant drawbacks:

1. Mercenaries have absolutely no ideological or ideological motivation, they are only interested in money. Therefore, they are often accused of cruel treatment of civilians, murders and looting;
2. The actions of PMCs are limited by the terms of the contract, which, of course, cannot provide for all options for the development of the situation. This somewhat reduces the flexibility of using PMCs in the conflict region;
3. The weak point is the coordination of the actions of PMCs and the regular army, since these structures often do not have a single control center.

The history of the emergence of private military companies

The history of mercenarism is lost in the dark depths of centuries. The first European mercenaries can be called the Vikings, who were happy to be employed in the personal guard of the Byzantine emperors. Then there were the Genoese crossbowmen, the Swiss, the German landsknechts and the famous Italian condottieri, who offered their sword to anyone who was able to give them a hard coin. So modern "wild geese" have someone to take an example from ...

But that's a long time ago past days, if we talk about modern times, then in the history of Western mercenarism, several main stages can be distinguished:

• 1940s–1970s In the first decades after the end of the world war, the number of people willing to fight for money increased many times over. There is nothing surprising in this - hundreds of thousands of Europeans and Americans had real combat experience, and some of them simply could not or did not want to find themselves in a new peaceful life. A buyer was found for this “product” very quickly - the collapse colonial system caused dozens of military conflicts around the world. These "new landsknechts" were very useful in them. The processes described above were quite large-scale, but not very organized. The answer to them was the official ban on mercenarism at the UN level, adopted in 1949. However, a number of countries - including the United States - have not ratified this document. Some of the mercenaries went into security structures, which sometimes understood the word "guard" in a very specific way;
• 1980–1990s. It's the time of the end of the Cold War, reshaping political map peace and significant cuts in military budgets. Hundreds of thousands of military personnel were laid off, both in the West and in the territory of the former Soviet Union. For those of them who did not want to break with the army, service in PMCs was almost the only way out. Around the same time, the American military leadership drew attention to private military companies. In the first Iraqi campaign, mercenaries already accounted for 1% of the total number of US Army personnel in the region. And that was just the beginning... On the whole, the 1990s can be called the “beginning of the heyday” of private military companies;
• 2001 - present. For this period, the starting point was 09/11/2001 - the day when terrorists attacked objects in the United States. In retaliation, Bush Jr. started two wars at once - in Afghanistan and Iraq. And the mercenaries took an active part in them, performing various tasks. A golden rain of new orders literally poured on the owners of PMCs. During these years, the number of private military companies increased rapidly, while their overall role in military conflicts and peacekeeping missions grew. Large transnational corporations paid the closest attention to PMCs, especially those that did business in the troubled regions of the planet. Currently, there are about 450 officially registered PMCs in the world.

It is believed that the first military company - in the modern sense of the term - was founded in 1967 by British Colonel David Sterling. It was called Watchguard International and was mainly engaged in the training of army units in the Middle East. In 1974 Vinnell Corp. - the private army of Northrop Grumman Corporation - received a half-billion dollar contract from the US government to train the army of Saudi Arabia and protect the oil fields located on the territory of this country.

Mercenaries from European PMCs actively participated in the Civil War in Angola. Some of them were captured and brought before the Angolan court, thanks to which the facts of the participation of mercenaries in this conflict became public.

In the mid-70s, a new kind of "soldiers of fortune" appeared - the so-called white-collar mercenaries. These were highly qualified military or technical specialists from Western countries who worked for pay in third world countries, helping to master new military equipment, repairing it, and planning military operations.

In 1979, another UN resolution was adopted regarding the prohibition of mercenarism, but this did not affect the overall situation.

After the end of the Cold War, PMCs participated in several armed conflicts in Africa, American “private traders” trained the Croatian army during the Yugoslav wars, and the Israelis trained the Georgian military.

In 2008, the Somali government hired the French military company Secopex to fight piracy and ensure safe navigation in the Gulf of Aden.

In 2011, employees of Western PMCs participated in the civil war in Libya.

Private military companies in Russia

Officially, there are no PMCs in Russia at all, they are prohibited by law, and for participation in a military conflict, a mercenary can receive from 3 to 7 years of general regime (Article 359 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). But what about in our country? If something is impossible, but you really want it, then you can ...

Russia, by the way, also has a rather deep tradition of mercenarism. The Cossacks were for a long time essentially private armies, albeit in public service. They absolutely did not disdain to sell their military skills. So, for example, the merchants Stroganovs hired Yermak and his team to conquer new lands in Siberia. Zaporozhye Cossacks as mercenaries participated in Thirty Years' War, served with the Persian Khan.

If we talk about modern times, then mercenarism on an "industrial" scale began in our country already in the 90s. At that time, tens of thousands of military specialists were laid off or left the service themselves due to miserable wages and general disorder. But many of them had real combat experience.

Currently in Russia there are a number of companies that provide customers with various services of a very specific nature. As a rule, veterans of special services or retired army officers are in the leadership of such organizations.

The most famous domestic companies providing military services are: Tiger Top-Rent Security, E.N.O.T. CORP, Moran Security Group, Wagner PMC, Cossacks, MAP PMC. Russian PMCs also guard facilities, escort cargo, train law enforcement officers, and fight against pirates. However, our private armies also have a certain specificity that distinguishes them from Western PMCs.

PMC Wagner or soldiers of failure

The most famous Russian private military company is without a doubt the Wagner PMC. In recent years, this name has appeared with enviable regularity on the pages of Russian and foreign publications. Formally, this organization does not exist at all; you will not find it either in the lists of Russian law enforcement agencies or in the register of legal entities. Despite this, the Wagner PMC is armed with armored vehicles, and its fighters are trained at one of the GRU bases in the Rostov region. This company has already managed to light up in two military conflicts varying degrees hybridity, which the Russian Federation is leading today - in the Donbass and in Syria.

Any private military companies, although they are considered commercial and independent organizations, are tightly controlled by the state. It could not be otherwise, because the scope of their activities is specific and extremely delicate, it is directly related to the country's international policy. Therefore, the state cannot allow any initiative in this field. For example, there is no doubt that American PMCs coordinate their activities with the State Department and the US intelligence community. Moreover, as a rule, such organizations are “ruled” by retirees from special forces and intelligence. And such people go into the category of "former" only after getting into a better world. Everything is very simple: veterans continue to promote the interests of the state, and it allows them to earn money on this ...

All of the above is doubly true for Russia. It's funny even to hear about some private independent Russian armies or vacationers who, at their own peril and risk, go to war with their neighbors. Yeah, right now ... This is so that our state, which, from Tsar Peas, treats any attempts of citizens to self-organize with maniacal distrust, will suddenly allow beaten men with combat experience to create some kind of group. Yes, and arm yourself besides.

PMC Wagner first "lit up" in the conflict in the Donbass in 2014, then the journalists found that many of its members took an active part in the events of the so-called Crimean spring. And then there was Syria...

The Wagner PMC got its name in honor of the military call sign of its commander, Dmitry Utkin, a former Grushnik and a big fan of the symbols of the Third Reich. The base of the Molkino Ministry of Defense, which is located in the Krasnodar Territory, is used as the main location of this PMC. There are many veterans of law enforcement agencies in this unit - former military or special forces. PMC Wagner has heavy weapons and armored vehicles at its disposal, and mercenaries are delivered to Syria by Russian military transport aircraft or ships of the Navy. The official Kremlin denies not only the use of the Wagnerites in its own interests, but even the very existence of this PMC, which, however, does not prevent it from awarding the fighters of the unit with state orders and medals. Often posthumous...

PMC Wagner is associated with the figure of Yevgeny Prigozhin, a businessman and restaurateur, a native of St. Petersburg, who is called Putin's personal chef. In addition, Prigozhin is considered the owner of the famous "troll factory" in Olgino.

On February 7, 2018, the combined assault group, consisting of Wagner PMC fighters, came under a massive attack by American forces and was almost completely destroyed. This happened near Hasham (Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor). PMC fighters tried to seize the Conoco gas processing plant, according to various estimates, their number was 600-800 people. The attackers had at their disposal tanks, light armored vehicles, artillery, including mortars and MLRS. The area where the plant is located belongs to the Kurdish zone of responsibility, and the attackers, of course, knew about it. And the United States is behind the Kurds in Syria. The Americans spotted the grouping at the stage of its concentration and immediately turned to their Russian colleagues with a reasonable question, what kind of people on the tanks and what do they need. The Russian command replied that there were no our servicemen in this area, and in general they did not know anything. On the evening of February 7, the Wagnerites approached the Kurdish positions, over which the American flag fluttered, and began shelling them with artillery. In response, the Americans launched a powerful missile and bomb attack on the mercenaries. Data on losses vary, but the most plausible figure is 250-300 people killed.

It is absolutely incomprehensible what the developers of this operation hoped for in general: maybe that the Americans would not shoot at the Russians and would just allow them to “squeeze out” a strategically important object?

Official Moscow did not react at all to this incident. Moreover, everything was done to hush him up, and in the end, the Foreign Ministry, through the mouth of the incomparable Zakharova, declared that about ten Russian citizens died in the incident, which we naturally did not send there.

This case clearly shows why the current Russian government needs structures like the Wagner group. First of all, it is an instrument of hybrid warfare, which makes it possible to relieve the state of responsibility for certain actions of a military nature.

This Russian PMCs differ from similar companies in the West. American or European mercenaries are also involved in various semi-legal operations, but this is the exception rather than the rule. PMCs in the West are ordinary firms that keep accounting records, pay taxes, and officially hire people. In Russia, this area of ​​activity is generally beyond the bounds of the law, and anyone who is involved in it can always be imprisoned.

The fighters of Western military companies are not used for frontal attacks or assaults on cities, they are too expensive. The vast majority of them do not participate in hostilities at all, so the definition of "mercenaries" in relation to them is rather a journalistic cliche, legally they are not.

But in PMC Wagner, judging by the information leaked to the press, everything is just the opposite. Both in Syria and in the Donbass, the Wagnerites often went in the first wave of attackers, therefore they suffered severe losses. The Americans for such purposes in the Middle East are trying to use the Kurds and Iraqis, in extreme cases, their regular units. In an interview, one of the Wagner fighters joked sadly that they only lacked bayonets for Kalashnikov assault rifles.

It cannot be said that all Russian PMCs are similar to the Wagnerites. In the same Iraq, PMC Lukoil-A, a division of the Russian oil giant, has long been operating. This company is engaged in the protection of wells, pipelines, escort of convoys - that is, the work is typical for any Western PMC.

Despite the heavy losses, the number of those wishing to try their luck under the leadership of Utkin does not decrease. The reason is simple - money. The mercenary receives 200-250 thousand rubles a month, which is simply fabulous money for the Russian outback.

In recent months, information has appeared in various sources about the start of Wagner PMC operations in Sudan and the Central African Republic. There is a lot of uranium, gold, and diamonds in the Central African Republic. They say that Prigozhin has already laid eyes on these riches, and also signed an agreement to mine gold in Sudan. It is likely that these business assets will have to be paid for with the blood of Russian "soldiers of fortune".

What is the future of mercenaries

If we talk about global trends, then in the coming years the number of private military companies will definitely only grow - the “outsourcing war” is too profitable. Already today, the number of PMC employees in Afghanistan and Iraq exceeds the number of American troops in these countries. Moreover, the Pentagon cannot even name exact amount mercenaries.

In Russia, after the February defeat of the Wagnerites, talk began again about giving the legal status of PMCs. Moreover, they are conducted at the level of deputies of the State Duma. The idea is, of course, sound. Private military companies are a multibillion-dollar international business, and our prospects for it seem very promising. If PMCs were legal, then their employees would receive an official legal status, have insurance in case of injury or death. Well, the state could count on an additional bonus in the form of taxes.

However, the main question is whether the current Russian leadership wants to legalize the "Ihtamnets" or whether it needs them in their current, semi-legal status.

In international peacekeeping operations of our time, private military companies occupy an equal position with regular armies. Moreover, based on the conclusions of American experts, such military corporations will play an increasingly significant role in local armed conflicts and wars in the future.

Already as of today it is quite obvious (based on the experience of conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq) that the existence of PMCs influences the course of events, and sometimes they take on most of the functions of the police and the army.

It should be noted that the US government has always considered the Middle East as a region of mandatory military presence of its army, because there are not only energy resources, but also the ability to control vast territories under the guise of spreading democracy. Over the past decades, armed conflicts have been constantly occurring in the Middle East. Therefore, we can safely say that, in addition to American private military companies, corporations from other countries will also appear on the continent. Already now there are many of them.

One of the most famous private military companies is the American security firm Blackwater (“Black Water”). It was founded in 1997 by former commando Eric Prince along with shooting coach Al Clark. A few years later, another company was created, which in fact was its new branch, Blackwater Security Consulting, whose fighters took part in military operations in Afghanistan. However, there is practically no information about its activities during this period, since the US government is clearly not interested in disclosing information of this kind.

In 2003, the corporation's fighters made their presence known in Iraq. Officially, Blackwater fighters were engaged in training units of the local police and army. The firm suffered its first documented losses in 2004 (death of 4 employees). At the time when the fighters of this organization were withdrawn from Iraq, there were 987 fighters, 775 of whom had US citizenship.

In 2009, the structure was renamed to Xe Services LLC, but this did not change the essence of its activities. In 2010, the company was renamed Academi.

The company has many training bases not only in the United States, but also in other countries, where more than 40,000 people train annually. And it itself consists of a large number of subsidiaries and divisions. Blackwater (Xe Services LLC, Academi) is currently the largest organization of its kind in the world.

The company is headquartered in North Carolina.

Academi fighters receive their main income from participating in various kinds of armed conflicts, about 90 percent of the company's profits come from contracts with the US government. Statistically, the picture is as follows: if in 2001 the company received about 735 thousand dollars from the US budget, then in 2005 this amount increased to 25 million, and a year later it reached 600 million dollars.

Every day, one mercenary from Academi costs the US state 1,200 dollars (for comparison: a regular army soldier costs only 150-190 dollars).

The company gained infamy after the massacres during its participation in the war in Iraq. Academi fighters were involved in operations that resulted in the death of a large number of civilians in Baghdad. In addition, there are rumors that the company is engaged in smuggling. So, in particular, a high-profile scandal occurred in March 2010, when more than five hundred Kalashnikov assault rifles and other weapons disappeared from American warehouses in Afghanistan. In September, several employees of the company were charged with arms trafficking.

On the other hand, Blackwater took part in rescue operations after the most destructive hurricane in US history, Katrina, where about two hundred employees were sent. For the entire period of this operation, the company received 240 thousand dollars of income daily.

As mentioned above, at the moment Academi is a huge military company that specializes in orders for military operations and cargo escort. In addition, each division that is part of the corporation performs one or another activity. In particular, Blackwater Maritime Solutions trains the special forces of the navies of many countries, such as Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Greece. In addition, this unit has been training American sailors for the destroyer USS Cole, and also provides protection to diplomats in Afghanistan, Israel, Iraq and Bosnia.

In 2003, the corporation bought Aviation Worldwide Services, which has three subsidiaries involved in the repair and maintenance of aircraft. This company is also very actively cooperating with the US military department, has at its disposal several MD-530 helicopters and CASA 212 and Boeing 767 aircraft, which were used during the war in Iraq. The same company was engaged in cargo transportation in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Academi also includes Blackwater Airships, which designs drones, Blackwater Armored Vehicle, which designs light armored vehicles, Raven Development Group, which is engaged in construction activities, and K-9, which trains service dogs. The brain of the corporation can be called the Xe Watch company, which monitors all the activities of the corporation's divisions, collects information on military conflicts, arms smuggling and other data related to the military sphere.

The company's official press release states that it also provides security and transportation services, air transportation, army logistics and humanitarian support. In addition, Academi staff assist in establishing law and order in disaster areas.

It should be noted that this company is one of the five companies that were selected by the US government to supply equipment and provide services to combat drug trafficking.

Academi has great capabilities and resources and enjoys frank patronage american government, therefore, even after the massacres of civilians during armed conflicts, not a single mercenary was held accountable or even fired.

The second largest private security company in the world is G4S. The number of its employees reaches 657 thousand people. It is a multinational security services firm headquartered in the UK in Crawley.

Representative offices of the company exist in 125 countries of the world. G4S was founded in 2004 after the merger of the Danish company Group 4 Falck and the British company Securicor PLC. From 2006 to 2008, the company was the target of criticism from trade unions, whose leaders claimed that subsidiaries did not respect human rights and labor standards. In 2008, G4S began providing security for major music and sports competitions. And the reason for this expansion of services was the acquisition of Rock Steady Group, a company specializing in such areas of security. In addition, in 2008, the company RONCO Consulting Corporation was bought, which is one of the leading companies that specialize in commercial and humanitarian demining and ammunition disposal. In the same year, G4S bought Armor Group International and completed the acquisition of Global Solutions Limited.

In 2009, the company continued to buy security companies. In particular, the leaders of the British market of commercial and technical consulting, as well as the leader in providing support for basic operations and controls, an American provider of integrated security systems and communications systems, were bought.

The G4S company was also not without scandals. In 2009, a prisoner from Western Australia died while being transported by company employees in a car with no air conditioning and no access to water. But then they chose not to start a criminal case. The same year saw the infamous Westeborg helicopter robbery. After the analysis of the robbery, both the police and the employees of the company were sharply criticized.

In the same year, employees of the Australian representative office of G4S went on strike due to the fact that the company did not care about the working conditions of the staff and did not pay a decent salary. This led to the fact that the entire judicial system of the Australian state of Victoria was put in jeopardy.

In 2011, G4S bought Guidance Monitoring, a company specializing in the design and manufacture of electronic monitoring technologies, including software and hardware used to track offenders. At the end of the same year, the company bought the assets of Chubb, a firm that specializes in emergency response in the UK.

The main activity of the company is focused on the provision of security services, the provision of money security services (transportation of valuables and funds), and the provision of security services. In addition, employees of the company ensure the detention of offenders in custody on behalf of the police, provide security services at airports. The company works on the introduction of security systems, provides logistics services to banks and provides cash management, takes part in the processes of consulting, risk management and security support in areas with limited security infrastructure. In addition, G4S staff are engaged in ground clearance of ammunition, training of personnel, and also provide a service for protecting the income of British railway companies.

Among the corporation's clients are governments of many sovereign states, corporations, financial institutions and public utilities, as well as airports and seaports, logistics and transport providers and individuals.

In 2011, the company's management signed the "UN Global Compact", which is an international standard for promoting business behavior, including labor protection, human rights, anti-corruption and environmental protection.

FDG Corp.

Another American military private company- the so-called "Group R" (Fort Defense Group Corporation, FDG Corp.) - was founded in 1996 by Marine A. Rodriguez. A few years later, the Russian officer D. Smirnov became his companion. Its headquarters is located in Jacksonville. The company has concentrated its main activities in almost all hot spots of the world - Somalia, the Gulf of Aden, Iraq, Guinea-Bissau, Israel, Palestine, the Gaza Strip and Afghanistan. The company is engaged in the provision of services such as the protection of ships and cargo, military logistics, sea and land transportation, training of special units and security groups for operations in high-risk areas, military consulting. A special role in the organization is assigned to the FDG SEAL unit, which includes security swimmers who can counter terrorism at high professional level both above and below the water.

The company worked in the Gulf of Aden, assisting the Somali government, in Guinea-Bissau, its employees assisted in the clearance and disposal of military waste and the organization of the Coast Guard.

The company became famous for its operations in transporting humanitarian and military cargo to Africa, guarding checkpoints in Iraq's Anbar province in 2006-2007, providing security for a delegation of veterans in Afghanistan during the opening of the memorial to the 9th company in 2011, and escorting American missions in the Gaza Strip in 2007 year. In addition, the company's fighters were noted for their participation in the Desert Fox and Desert Storm operations in Iraq, as well as for escorting oil tankers from the port of Umm Qasr to the countries of Indochina.

In 2010, the company underwent significant legal and organizational changes to optimize operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.

DynCorp is one of the largest private military companies in the US. The company traces its origins to two firms that were founded in 1946: "Land-AirInc", which was engaged in technical maintenance aircraft, and California Eastern Airways, which specialized in air business transportation. The latter was founded by military pilots. They founded the air cargo market and received a contract to serve American troops during the Korean War. In addition, a contract was signed with the White Sands missile range. Some experts are sure that this company was connected with the CIA.

Land-Air Inc. was acquired by California Eastern Airways in 1951. And a year later there was another merger - with the company AIRCAR, which specialized in the sale of commercial aircraft and spare parts for foreign governments and airlines.

In 1961, the company was rebranded, which was named "Dynalectron Corporation". After the expansion of the company, several main groups were identified in its composition: energy, contract, aviation and government services. Over the three decades of its existence, the company absorbed 19 other companies, the number of employees reached 7 thousand people, and the annual income reached $ 300 million.

During the period 1976-1981, the company absorbed 14 more firms and by 1986 became the leader in the defense order market in North America. A year later, the company changed its name to DynCorp. The company's revenues by 1994 amounted to more than $1 billion, and three years later they exceeded $2.4 billion. The company bought four dozen companies and increased the number of employees to 24 thousand people.

DynCorp has been involved in testing rocketry for the US military, developing vaccines, and installing security systems in US embassies. Then, after another diversification of the business, the company bought another 19 companies that were engaged in the production of digital services, as a result of which DynCorp received government contracts in the field of information technologies. In 2003, about 50 percent of the company's business was IT services for the FBI, CIA.

DynCorp currently generates more than $3.4 billion in annual revenue, employs over 10,000 people, and operates in areas such as air operations, recovery and development, Maintenance and exploitation, training of intelligence agencies, security services.

In particular, the company's employees provide air support during operations to curb drug trafficking and combat terrorism. In addition, Afghan Air Force pilots are being trained. During the years of the war in Iraq, DynCorp was engaged in search and rescue operations, the deployment of rapid reaction forces, and medical evacuation.

Currently, the corporation's employees serve American military aircraft and helicopters, provide air support in the fight against forest fires.

In 2010, a special department was created in the company to provide humanitarian assistance in post-conflict and conflict zones, to carry out reforms. Thus, the company's specialists provided assistance in strengthening public financial management in Ghana, restoring peaceful life in Uganda, organizing anti-corruption programs in Malawi, Madagascar and Nigeria.

Since 2010, the corporation began to conduct training courses for intelligence services. At the moment, the company has about 300 professionals who are ready to provide services for the training of counterintelligence officers and intelligence officers, teach the basics of conducting special operations, and also train translators for the American army.

DynCorp was also not without scandals. So, in the late 90s, its employees were accused of pedophilia and child trafficking. During the investigation, evidence of these crimes was obtained. In addition, employees of the firm, who worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina, were accused of sex trafficking in 2000. Despite the fact that all the participants in the crimes were dismissed, none of them was held accountable. And soon the company's management admitted that even before that, they fired several employees for such crimes.

And in 2001, Ecuadorian farmers accused DynCorp personnel of daily herbicide spraying, which had a negative impact on the health of the local population and on crop yields.

Then another scandal arose: employees of the company, who trained police officers in Afghanistan, used child prostitution and took drugs.

No less famous is another American private military company, MPRI. It was founded in 1987 by retired General W. Lewis. It has about 350 former American generals on its staff. This company is on commercial basis is engaged in consulting in the field of army management and reform (in Iraq), selection and purchase of weapons (in Georgia), development of doctrines and concepts (in Georgia), solves situational and operational problems, conducts humanitarian operations and military exercises. The firm provides services to the US government and the authorities of other states, acting in conjunction with the Pentagon and the CIA. At the moment, the company is headed by Generals Soyster, Vuono and Kresen.

MPRI has the largest database of American military specialists, and its employees have repeatedly participated in local conflicts and wars, in particular, assisted the government of Colombia, Liberia and Albanian militants in Macedonia, trained and planned operations for the Croatian army in 1995. So, for example, in Croatia in August 1995, a successful operation "Storm" was carried out, which was organized by this company. True, later the MPRI leadership denied their involvement in the operation, since the Croats staged ethnic cleansing during it. In turn, the Bosnian militants announced that they were ready to sign the Dayton Accords, but only if the MPRI would train their army. Thus, the company continued to cooperate with the Kosovo Liberation Army in Albania in 1998-1999 and in Macedonia in 2000-2001.

It is authentically known that in Bosnia and Afghanistan, the company's employees fought as part of "Islamic brigades". On the one hand, this will say little to an uninformed person, but in fact they fought under the direct supervision of the CIA.

The American government, therefore, without intervening officially in political processes achieved the intended goals.

In 2012, Serbian public organizations came out against the company with accusations of MPRI involvement in the genocide of Serbs in 1995 on the territory of Croatia, because before the start of the special operation, the company's specialists trained soldiers and officers of the Croatian armed forces. The organizations demanded $10 billion in compensation, that is, $25,000 for every Serb expelled from Croatian territory.

At the same time, representatives of the MPRI company stated that they did not agree with the requirements of the lawsuit and the fact that the company's employees cooperated with Croatia in the 1990s cannot be considered a violation of the UN sanctions that were imposed on Zagreb.

MPRI is currently the main vehicle for American policy in Africa. At the moment, she is participating in several programs to create a collective rapid reaction force that will be able to conduct humanitarian and peacekeeping operations on the continent. Active military reform The firm is hosting in Nigeria. In Central Africa, the company chose Equatorial Guinea as a base after unsuccessful attempts to offer its services to the government of the Congo.

Aegis Defense Services

There are private military companies in the UK. One of the most famous is Aegis Defense Services, which was founded in 2002 by former British Army officer T. Spicer. The company has offices in Kenya, Iraq, Nepal, Bahrain, Afghanistan and the USA. The headquarters is located in Basel.

The number of personnel of the company reaches 20 thousand mercenaries. The main customer is the US government. Employees of this company are engaged in security activities in the aerospace, diplomatic and government sectors, as well as in the mining and oil and gas industries. The firm currently has a contract with the US government to provide security in Iraq and is valued at $293 million. In addition, in 2011, she was awarded a $497 million contract to protect the US government in Kabul.

Although officially a security company, it also provides armed personnel for the US government and UN missions. Geographically, its activities extend to Iraq, China, Greece, Congo, Kosovo, Nigeria, Sudan, Russia, Sweden and Switzerland, Tunik, United Kingdom, USA, Greece, Holland, Afghanistan, Nepal, Kenya and Bahrain, where assessment work is carried out risks and protection of oil companies. The number of the company reaches about 5 thousand people.

In 2005, Aegis Defense Services seemed to be involved in a scandal when a video appeared on the Internet in which company employees fired on Iraqi civilians. The company's management did not admit guilt, but the Pentagon refused further cooperation.

Erinys International

Another British military company that was founded by former British officer J. Garratt and South African apartheid official S. Cleary in 2002 and registered in the British Virgin Islands is Erinys International. In 2003, Cleary left, and British intelligence officer A. Morrison took his place, but a year later he moved to Kroll Inc, which is the world's largest financial intelligence firm.

Erinys has subsidiaries in the UK, the Republic of the Congo, Cyprus and South Africa.

The company's activities are focused mainly on the provision of security services, in particular, in areas of Central Africa with very difficult natural conditions. In addition, as areas of activity, one can single out the training of military personnel and consultations in the military sphere, participation in operational military activities, work in intelligence services and the police. The company's employees are former employees of British intelligence agencies and special units.

Erinys International accompanies US government contracts in Iraq. The largest mission consisted of 16,000 fighters in more than 280 locations throughout the country, who took part in securing energy assets, in particular pipelines.

The company's employees showed themselves well during the wars in Iraq, when about 6.5 thousand soldiers were sent to guard important facilities.

The company was also at the center of a scandal when in 2004 the press reported on the mistreatment of prisoners. The journalists' materials testified that the firm's employees violated the convention on human rights by using severe torture against a 16-year-old resident of Iraq during a military investigation.

Currently, this company works closely with oil and gas corporations, extractive industries, non-governmental organizations and public services. And in each of the contracts it helps clients to assess possible risks, regardless of the remoteness of the region of work and the level of complexity. In addition, the company's services are used by the American and British governments, as well as the UN.

Northbridge Services Group

There is also a joint US-British private military company Northbridge Services Group, whose base is located in Dominican Republic, and branches in the UK and Ukraine. According to some estimates, the company has at its disposal about three thousand former British military, as well as several thousand former military personnel from the armies of France, South Africa and the United States.

Northbridge Services Group provides services to the needs of multinational corporations, governments and non-governmental organizations, individuals and the corporate sector.

Northbridge Services Group assists law enforcement agencies in the fight against drug trafficking, terrorism, illegal search for information and organized crime, as well as helps in the protection of natural resources and maritime security. In 2012, the company's financial income reached 50 and a half million dollars.

In 2003, retired US Army Colonel Robert Kovacic took over as head of the company. The company rose to prominence in 2003 when it successfully rescued 25 oil workers who had been held hostage on an oil rig for two weeks. In addition, employees of the company played an important role in the civil conflict in Liberia in 2003, taking the side of the rebels. The result of their actions was the overthrow of the official government and the introduction of a UN peacekeeping mission.

The company, which specializes in security, even prepared a special operation to kidnap the disgraced President of Liberia Charles Taylor for an additional fee (about $4 million) in order to transfer him to a special UN war crimes court. However, this initiative was rejected as provocative and ridiculous.

At the same time, employees of the American FBI and the British Customs Service were conducting an investigation to clarify all the circumstances of the failed kidnapping, during which it was found that the company's management was negotiating the conditions for the capture and transfer of the leader of the African state. It was also established that the UN court did not refuse the company's services, but refused to pay money for the kidnapping, citing the lack of money.

"White Legion"

Separately, it is necessary to note the so-called "White Legion", which owes its name to operations on the African continent. According to various sources (and there is very little information that would be credible), the legion included several volunteer battalions of volunteers from Europe who fought in 1997 on the side of the dictator General Mobutu, who came to power in Zaire in 1960 after a military coup.

At the time of participation in the operation in Zaire, the legion consisted of about three hundred people. It consisted of one unit and two corps (Slavic corps, Colonel Tavernier's corps and Captain Dragan's unit).

Due to the fact that the fighters of the legion belonged to different nationalities (and here, according to some sources, there were French, Ukrainians and Russians, Belarusians and even Serbs), the fighters did not always understand the commands given in a foreign language, which affected the coherence work and combat.

The legion was armed with a lot of equipment and weapons: about 5-7 aircraft, mainly Soviet Mi-24s, 10 combat helicopters, as well as a good weapon Soviet-made: 60-mm mortars, RPG-7 grenade launchers, Igla MANPADS, Yugoslav RB M57, M53 light machine guns.

The most distinguished corps of Russian legionnaires. When the retreat began, they launched an air strike using the Il-76 as a bomber. In general, the Slavic legionnaires were on the continent until May 1997, and then disappeared just as suddenly as they appeared. They flew away on planes, with all the special equipment and in full uniform. The destination was either Tiraspol in Transnistria, or Serbia. Until now, it is not clear how the plane, full of armed people and military equipment, was able to land without hindrance almost in the center of Europe. According to rumors, this was a special operation, which was helped by Major General V. Antyufeev, who at that time was the head of the Transnistrian Security Committee.

In addition to these private military companies, there are a great many similar ones, big and small, solid and credible, and dubious. Every year they expand the scope of their activities, so we can say that in the near future such companies will become the main tool for implementing the policy of a state in the field of military security abroad.

Materials used:
http://russian7.ru/2014/04/7-glavnyx-chastnyx-armij-mira/
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_Professional_Resources
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/FDG
https://ru-ru.facebook.com/dirclub/posts/687503704605451
http://www.militarists.ru/?p=6936
http://masterok.livejournal.com/1750645.html

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Posted 12/26/2014 by redaktor

PMCs do not yet have an official legal status in the Russian Federation - this bill is under consideration, therefore, the state does not have the right to officially involve PMCs in solving certain problems. But despite this, PMCs successfully exist and work both on the territory of the Russian Federation and abroad.

At the moment, there are not so many domestic military companies. The main market for such services is represented by the following players:

PMC RSB-Group

The creators are professional military men, GRU and FSB reserve officers with command and combat experience. All activities of the company are based on compliance with the laws of the Russian Federation and the laws of the countries in which the company protects the interests of its clients.

The company is not engaged in mercenarism and advising organizations of a terrorist nature, overthrowing governments, etc. Tasks on the territory of the Russian Federation are carried out by a private security company, intelligence activities are carried out by a special agency of the RSB, and for special / tasks outside the country there is a personnel unit of reserve officers of various troops.

Most challenging tasks are carried out in close conjunction with the New Zealand PMC NavSec Int Ltd. The company's services range from performing tasks in high-risk areas and conducting military operations to competitive intelligence, legal support, military consulting and protection of ships.

PMC MAR

The company's activities are carried out in strict accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation and other states, on the territory of which services of various nature are provided.

The list of services includes military activity, technical / protection and intelligence, protection of convoys, individuals, gas and oil pipelines, other facilities, cargo escort, legal / legal support, etc.

Antiterror-Eagle

The company was registered in 1998 as an organization created by former military personnel. Company employees: about 40 percent are reserve soldiers (intelligence and special forces of the Airborne Forces), another 40 percent are reserve soldiers from special / purpose units (ROSICH, VITYAZ) and 20 percent are veterans of the GRU, VIMPEL and the Navy.

The company specializes in the training of military personnel, sapper work, and the protection of facilities.

Moran Security Group

This PMC is an international group of companies that provide services in the field of medical / security, consulting, security / security, cargo transportation.

A team of professionals with solid experience and training carries out all the work from scratch and solely on the basis of international legislation and the laws of the Russian Federation.

From services: convoy of ships and armed escort, logistics, protection of pipelines and seaports / platforms, intelligence, etc.

Redoubt-Antiterror

It is a military-professional union of organizations from the military of the Russian Federation (and not only) from the special / purpose troops, as well as the Airborne Forces. The company was founded in 2008 by a group of scouts and paratrooper veterans (SVR, Marine Special Forces, Airborne Forces and GRU, Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs).

Each employee has combat experience and is a participant in special / operations and peacekeeping operations.

The experience of PMCs is work in Iraq and Syria, Yugoslavia and Afghanistan, as well as in other hot spots. Company services: security and safety, certification of specialists for the provision of these services, training of personal security groups, briefing of specialists before a business trip on demining, protection of the protection zone according to UN requirements, etc.

Tiger Top-Rent Security

Founded in 2005 to conduct operations in Iraq. This PMC broke up in 2006, after which its employees created independent separate PMCs, known as Redoubt Antiterror, Ferax, Phoenix and Moran Security Group.

PMC Tiger Top-rent security (as well as Orel-anti-terror) are not inferior in professionalism to their colleagues from the USA and Great Britain. From 2004 to 2007, the tasks performed by the company's employees included escorting convoys, guarding military facilities, as well as guarding the personnel of oil companies and Russian diplomats, missions in Lebanon and Israel, Palestine and Afghanistan.

Now PMCs are working in the "gray" zone

Methods and resources of warfare at the end of XX - early XXI centuries are significantly different from those used by our grandfathers and great-grandfathers. One of the know-how of the past century was the official appearance of private military companies.

In Russia, such activities are prohibited and fall under two articles of the Criminal Code, although the use of PMCs in armed conflict zones has long been a common practice around the world. And now, when Russia is expanding its presence in other regions, PMCs could become good assistants to the army and promoters of the interests of the state. Of course, like anything, there are pros and cons. Whether Russia officially needs private military companies, which now exist in the country in a very shaky legal status, MK decided to find out from experts.

BlackWater is America's most famous private military company. After the scandal associated with their activities in Iraq, they rebranded and are now called Academy.

Background of the question

The "ancestors" of PMCs can conditionally be considered "soldiers of fortune", who began to operate already in the 50s. These were organized groups mercenaries who went to hot spots for good money and carried out the orders of those who gave them more money. As a rule, these were former military men or people simply interested in military affairs. After completing the mission, such units were usually disbanded. The first PMC appeared in Britain in the 60s. Its creator, a British army colonel, after analyzing the actions of the mercenaries, decided that their activities could, roughly speaking, be put on a conveyor belt. They were mainly engaged in the protection and security of oil companies in unstable regions. Until the 1990s, such organizations operated in the "grey" zone. Western governments used them to achieve their goals where the use of regular troops was impossible.

Gradually, PMCs began to emerge from the shadows after the end of the Cold War. Repeatedly, they tried to drive their activities into some kind of legal framework. After the scandal with the notorious Blackwater in Iraq (murders of civilians, etc.), the question of the responsibility of PMCs became very acute.

On September 17, 2008, the Montreux Document was adopted - a set of recommendations rather than strict rules. He determined that both the "country of origin" of the company and the country with which the PMCs entered into a contract should bear responsibility for the activities of PMCs. According to this document: “PMCs are private business entities that provide military and / or security services, regardless of how they characterize themselves. Military and security services include, in particular, armed protection and protection of people and objects, such as convoys, buildings and other places; maintenance and operation of combat complexes; detention of prisoners; advising or training local military and security personnel.”

In Russia, the activities of PMCs fall under the scope of two articles of the Criminal Code: "Mercenary" and "Organization of an illegal armed formation." Plus, the purchase of military weapons from us is illegal. However, taking into account the global trend of transferring some state functions to private hands, the question of the possibility of legalizing the activities of private military companies is increasingly being raised in our country.

The relevance of the issue is evidenced by repeated attempts to push through a law in Russia that would regulate the actions of PMCs. Now their status is very blurred - and officially they cannot exist, because this is not allowed by law, however, de facto structures that are very similar in their functions to PMCs already exist, they only operate in the "gray" zone.

“If the phenomenon takes place, then it should be controlled”

We asked ourselves the main question: does Russia need private military companies and who should regulate and control their activities? For answers to this question, we turned to Vladimir Neyelov, an expert at the Center for Strategic Market Research.

- You spoke about several bills on the activities of PMCs. Why wasn't one accepted?

— I think that we need to start with a little historical digression. This issue has been discussed in Russia for the past 6 years. The first attempt to pass a similar law was made back in 2012. As prime minister, in his message to the Federation Council, Vladimir Putin said that such a bill was timely. Therefore, in 2012 it was submitted for discussion. Dmitry Rogozin also publicly supported the bill. After several months of wandering through the corridors of the State Duma, the bill was turned down, pointing out that it "contradicts the Constitution." The next attempt to push through a similar bill was made in 2014, after the events in Ukraine. In November 2014, the bill did not go beyond the stage of preliminary consideration by the Council of the State Duma: it was also rejected for the same reason - a contradiction to the Constitution. In 2015-2016, two attempts were made, which were also unsuccessful. I think that the point here is in the position of the main power structures, and the events in Ukraine added fuel to the fire. First, there will be the issue of arms trafficking. However, there is world experience this problem can be resolved. For example, employees of British PMCs generally do not have the right to walk armed in the UK. How this will be regulated in our country is a question. Plus, as mentioned above, Ukraine has demonstrated to everyone that, having money, a person can create his own army, which, with the proper level of training, can withstand government forces.

- Is there really a need for legal regulation of the activities of PMCs in Russia?

- I am a supporter of the principle that if the phenomenon is already taking place, then it should be controlled. In Russia, in a certain "border" zone, there are, say, "RSB-Group", "Moran Security Group" and some other similar companies. That is, in Russia it definitely makes sense to regulate the activities of PMCs. Here the question of goal-setting should also be raised: if something is being created in the state, then you need to understand why. In the USA, for example, such companies are engaged in a wide range of activities. This includes the protection of ships, energy complex facilities, diplomatic and other missions, logistics, and training. In general, PMCs can be used where it makes no sense to delay the main forces. Why, say, leave a group in the rear to protect the oil infrastructure and thereby weaken the main grouping?

In the form in which private military companies exist in Western countries, this is a fairly effective means of solving specific problems, the range of which is much wider than it is customary to present to the general public. But, as Western experience shows, there are a large number of problems. We must not forget that the owners of private military companies, as in any business, set as their main goal the extraction of profit, which in a certain sense is contraindicated in such a matter as military security.

In Russia, there are a large number of military specialists who, for various reasons, left the power structures. And many would like to continue to engage in military affairs. And PMCs for such people are a great alternative. In Britain, for example, it is not uncommon for such companies to enter into agreements with large oil companies to protect facilities in hot spots. We could act on the same principle - this will not delay the regular units and the money will remain in the country. Moreover, large domestic corporations operating in unstable regions of the world could legally hire Russian PMCs to provide security. Their services, in turn, would be in good demand among many states and foreign businesses, that is, they would bring some income to the Russian treasury (provided that they would not be taken offshore).

But there is a downside to the personnel issue - there may be an outflow of personnel from law enforcement agencies. Indeed, on the example of Western PMCs, they pay more in private companies. In addition to financial, there are other motives. For example, in private military companies there is not such a rigid hierarchical structure as in the armed forces, where it is often more difficult for professionals who want to realize their potential to do so than in a private organization.

- How should the state control the activities of PMCs?

- The activities of PMCs, of course, should be controlled. First, there is a licensing mechanism for this. Any PMC, before entering the market, must go through this procedure. Plus, any activity that is related to the circulation of weapons should be under the control of the state.

- What functions can PMCs perform in a combat zone?

— Protection of objects, dignitaries, convoy escort, consulting, moreover, in the broadest sense - from operational-tactical to strategic. There are examples when PMCs help the state in which they work in the development of military doctrine. In Ukraine, for example, employees of PMCs were involved in police reform. In addition, the functions may include logistics, logistics, and training. By training, you also need to understand a very wide range - here the training of personnel and the basics of tactics, and the handling of new types of weapons. Often, PMC employees are also involved as military translators. Private experts can be involved in intelligence gathering. In general, the spectrum is wide.

- What types of weapons, in your opinion, can PMCs use?

- Well, first of all, light small arms, light armored vehicles, armored vehicles. Helicopters and transport aircraft. But the use of heavy armored vehicles is the prerogative of the army.

- Who should be responsible for the activities of PMCs? The company itself, the state or the employer?

Again, it's easier to explain with an example. In 2012, there was a rather revealing story with our Moran Security Group. They signed a contract in Nigeria. And this country is in the zone of interests of Britain, and the queen's subjects did not want to share their "piece of the pie". Therefore, the ship on which the company's employees were sent on a mission was detained for smuggling weapons. For a year and a half, our citizens could not return home. And in such cases, it is necessary to act on the basis of the consideration that these are our citizens. The United States has an ideal model of behavior in such situations - they first take their citizens to their territory, and then deal with them (or do not deal with them, as often happened in Iraq). There is another version of the situation - if a PMC is hired by a corporation. Then it turns out that the employing company should bear the responsibility.

Our citizens Roman Zabolotny and Georgy Tsurkanov are now held captive by ISIS (banned on the territory of the Russian Federation). What happened to them is not known - exactly the same as the way they got to Syria. Perhaps if PMCs were legalized in Russia, then the fate of adventurers would have turned out differently.

"We have a chance to jump on a departing train"

In the West, PMCs have long been familiar organizations. It is quite realistic to look at how they are arranged, what tasks they perform and how they live. A former employee of a Western PMC, who asked not to be named, told MK about his service.

Whose company was it?

- This is a British company.

— Was it a general company or specialized in something specific?

- We were engaged only in the protection of ships. The company specializes in this.

- Compared to official structures, did PMCs pay more?

— I can’t judge everyone, but when I came there in 2010, our salary was quite large — $10,000 a month. Well, then, if you remember the situation with piracy, our type of service was in demand. The pirates were poorly armed, and only a few people on the ship were enough to protect it. At that time, the majority of the company's employees were citizens of Western Europe. There were many British and French.

However, after some time, the pirates' weapons became more modern, and they got the opportunity to go to sea. But by this point, there were enough companies in the market that competed for orders. So gradually the salary began to fall. First, it was cut by 2 times - and the most qualified personnel began to leave the company, but from those who wished from countries of Eastern Europe, from the Balkans, Ukraine there was no end. They fought so-so, but were undemanding. Then the money became even half as much, and that's when I left.

— Is it necessary to regulate the activities of PMCs in Russia?

- I believe that if the phenomenon takes place, then the legal framework must be adjusted to fit it. In Russia, as far as I understand, everything that is not explicitly prohibited is allowed. Therefore, some security companies appear, which in essence are PMCs, at least their range of services is approximately similar. But they operate in the so-called gray zone. If the draft law is drafted correctly, the functions of PMCs, their duties and rights are clearly defined, then there will be no problems with this. Plus, this is an injection into the state's economy - they will pay taxes.

— Are you aware of the situation with the Moran Group in 2012? In your opinion, in such conflicts, are PMC employees primarily citizens of the country or mercenaries?

“It is very strange that it took so long to free the people. It is clear that such situations are quite real, but official contracts are concluded for this. Whether this document was in the hands of the detainees is unknown. However, it could well be proof that people did not just come here with weapons to kill civilians, but that they were performing a specific mission at the request of the country's government or a large company. But if the incident has already occurred, then the state whose citizens find themselves in such a situation should, in my opinion, make every effort to ensure that they return home as soon as possible. And only then deal with them according to internal laws. A more slippery situation with Iraq and the Academy (as Blackwater is now called). There was a violation of international law, humanitarian law, civilians were killed, who did not pose a danger to PMC employees. In this case, this conflict is already, in fact, an interstate one, and the International Tribunal should deal with it.

— Do we have a chance to catch up with the West in terms of development of PMCs?

“I think we have every chance. We have excellent military specialists, many of those who have real combat experience, but for some reason cannot serve in the Armed Forces or have been transferred to the reserve - why not give people the opportunity to somehow share their experience. Figuratively speaking, there is a chance to jump into the outgoing train.