Russian recruits Syrians to help with urban combat in Ukraine

 Wall Street Journal:

Moscow is recruiting Syrians skilled in urban combat to fight in Ukraine as Russia’s invasion is poised to expand deeper into cities, according to U.S. officials.

An American assessment indicates that Russia, which has been operating inside Syria since 2015, has in recent days been recruiting fighters from there, hoping their expertise in urban combat can help take Kyiv and deal a devastating blow to the Ukraine government, according to four American officials. The move points to a potential escalation of fighting in Ukraine, experts said.

It is unclear how many fighters have been identified, but some are already in Russia preparing to enter the conflict, according to one official.

Officials declined to elaborate on what else is known about the deployment of Syrian fighters to Ukraine, the status or precise scale of the effort.

According to a publication based in Deir Ezzor, Syria, Russia has offered volunteers from the country between $200 and $300 “to go to Ukraine and operate as guards” for six months at a time.
...

Russia has admitted to a little over 500 KIA's in the war and over a thousand wounded.  Ukraine puts the Russian losses at around 11,000.  That Russia is having to hire mercenaries suggests at a minimum its troops were not trained for urban combat. The Russian operation continues to be stalled at this point.  The Russians have had severe logistic problems with miles-long convoys sitting on the roads.

ISW reports that Russian troops are still regrouping.

See, also:

US gives Poland the 'green light' to give Ukraine MIG fighter jets as Russia warns it is at WAR with ANY country hosting Kyiv's aircraft

This raises the question of whether the Russians have the wherewithal for a wider war.

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