The number of PMC “Wagner” in the United States is determined at 50 thousand people.
Photo: Alexander KOTS
PMC of international importance
Wagner PMC founder Yevgeny Prigozhin struck up a correspondence with John Kirby, US National Security Council strategic communications coordinator. His open letter, sent to an American who accused a Russian PMC of “international criminal activity” to late last week, he begins: “Dear Mr. Kirby! I have a question for you: can you name what crime PMC Wagner committed?
Prigogine’s letter, of course, will remain unanswered. The businessman, of course, understands this very well, which is why, even before writing to Kirby, he ironically commented on his statement: he called the Americans and their PMC “colleagues”, and the relationship between them “confrontation of criminal clans “. .” After all, in fact, numerous American PMCs have been committing war crimes in many countries of the world in which they operate for decades, and there is plenty of evidence of this.
Bloody footprints of “Black Water”
The most famous American PMC Blackwater (“Black Water”) has been active since 1997. Strong scandals related to the crimes committed by its members forced the owners to change the name of the company, now known as Asademi. Military experts consider it one of the largest PMCs in the world, with a workforce of about 21 thousand people. Specialization: support for the coup d’état and the regime established in countries where the US military contingent is deployed. There’s evidence that he’s also working on arms smuggling, monitoring drug trafficking from the Middle East.
It gained wide popularity in the 2000s, when Blackwater employees took an active part in the hostilities in Afghanistan and Iraq.
One of the most high-profile crimes to receive publicity in the press was committed in 2007. PMC mercenaries escorting US State Department officials fired at civilians in Baghdad’s Nisur Square. 17 people were killed, including women and children, and dozens were injured. The “excuse” of the Americans that, according to them, they only returned fire from the attackers, did not look convincing – none of the company’s employees, unlike the peaceful Iraqis, were injured.
After this incident, an investigation was carried out by the judicial authorities, which found that in more than 80% of the 195 confrontations involving Blackwater, the mercenaries were the first to open fire. A very convincing defense. Every year until the withdrawal of the main US troops from Iraq in 2011, the Blackwater mercenaries left behind a bloody trail: they either shot drunken inhabitants or “revenged” the local guerrillas with particular cruelty for their audacity in the struggle. the invaders.
Abu Ghraib executioners
The infamous Abu Ghraib prison, where suspicious (from the US point of view) citizens of Arab origin were imprisoned, became a symbol of the wicked brutality of US troops in Iraq. A real shock for the whole world were the photographs in which “brave” American soldiers (including women) with Hollywood smiles pose against the backdrop of pyramids of naked technicians and hang them on hooks. The wave of indignation aroused in the media forced the US government to acknowledge the crimes and even to sentence some of those involved. But this affected only the military personnel of the regular army. Meanwhile, at least half of the investigators at Abu Ghraib were mercenaries from the private military firms Titan and CACI. Dozens of cases of crimes involving them were documented, but none of them were ultimately brought to justice.
There were also other notable cases.
2005 PMC Zapata mercenaries were arrested in Iraq after randomly shooting not only a crowd of civilians, but also US Marines. It must be assumed that it was this last circumstance that influenced the cessation of its activities.
2006 PMC Aegis uploads a “trophy video” on its website in which its fighters shoot civilians. Elvis Presley’s hilarious rock ‘n’ roll song “Runaway Train” plays in the background.
In the same year, the commander of the Triple Canopy PMC was accused of shooting Iraqi civilians “for entertainment purposes”. This fact became known only due to the fact that two of his former subordinates reported on the “soldier of fortune” in retaliation for his dismissal.
Libya, Syria, further away everywhere
In all, 93 PMCs participated in the Iraqi campaign under US government contracts beginning in 2008, according to official sources. And in the American media at the same time there was information about 310 PMC. There is still no exact data on the actual number of US mercenary companies that fought in Iraq.
Regarding the number of PMC employees who visited Iraq on various contracts, Jeremy Scaihill in his book “Blackwater. The rise of the most powerful mercenary army,” he wrote: “when the US tanks entered Baghdad, they had behind them an army of private contractors, who had not been in any war before.” The number of PMC employees in Iraq at the end of 2008 it numbered 163,446, slightly less than the number of US military personnel in that country.The following year, PMC personnel were reduced by 30,000, but their total number was only two percent less than of the US Army contingent in this country.
So the current number of Wagner’s PMCs, defined in the US as 50,000, cannot be compared to the involvement of US “commercial fighters” in the occupation of Iraq. And if he estimates how many overseas PMC warriors are now in Libya, Syria and in the same Iraq, not to mention Ukraine, then the American superiority in this matter seems undeniable. Perhaps Kirby should take a closer look at what his own “soldiers of fortune” are doing outside of Washington?
Hangover from past victories
Why did Washington suddenly decide to take on Russia’s PMCs? Yes, because he acts too successfully on the battlefield, he defeats the enemy, prepared and armed by the Americans. That is, “Wagner”, in fact, is at war with them. And very convincing. Therefore, he must be cancelled. Outlaw, impose sanctions, and this is the same as a cart prohibited in the fight. To be the first, according to the logic and habit ingrained in the Americans, all means are good.
It is timely to recall how the United States unilaterally withdrew from the ABM Treaty in 2002 under Bush Jr. They just thought that Moscow was already “kaput”, so why should it have agreements on the basis of equality? And when they recently realized that they were lagging behind on certain types of the latest weapons that Russia already has, they started talking about the need to ban these types. Do you recognize the logic?
So today the Wagner PMC interfered with them, so it’s outlawed. Tomorrow they want to cancel something else. And to understand that the time to speak to Russia like this is over, they will not be able to do it soon. let’s hold on
