mil.ru
Moscow Times/Bloomberg: Putin's ‘Chef’ Preps Soldiers for Final Assault on Syrian Rebels
Russia’s military is incorporating mercenaries hired by a wealthy ally of President Vladimir Putin into its planned offensive to help Syria’s army retake the last major stronghold held by jihadist rebels, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Hundreds of freelance fighters who answer to Yevgeny Prigozhin, the businessman known as “Putin’s chef” for his Kremlin catering contracts, are amassing near the northwestern Syrian city of Idlib for a full-scale assault that’s expected to start within weeks, the people said.
Grouped into tank-equipped units of 50 men each and backed by Russian air power, the plan is for these soldiers to work with uniformed Syrian forces, first to establish escape corridors for civilians, one of the people said. Then they’ll engage in the street-to-street fighting required to clear the heavily populated city of thousands of al-Qaeda-affiliated militants, he said. The operation, if it goes ahead, could take months.
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Update: Hundreds Of Russian Troops Deploy To Idlib In Case Ceasefire Collapses: Report (Zero Hedge)
WNU editor: There are going to need more than just a few hundred soldiers. In the meantime the casualties mount .... 3 Russian Soldiers Killed in Syria – Military Source (Moscow Times).
3 comments:
Vladimir and Yevgeny are betting on a quick victory. Now we see the details of the agreements made in the Moscow meetings.
I believe WNU is correct in his assessment of the amount of troops needed, although I also believe the ROE followed by the Russian side will be considerably different than than what the US used. Will that make a difference? There are those betting a lot that it will.
Islamicists never gave Russians quarter in Chechnya. Russians cannot expect any in Syria. The Islamicists have made their reputation and therefore can expect no quarter. They had better be prepared to fight to the death or bug out. What do you do to a Russian veteran of Syria? Buy them a beer!
AJ,
Not necessarily true.
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