Wagner mercenaries entering Belarus as Minsk announces ‘road map’ for joint military drills

By The Associated Press

An independent monitoring group says a large convoy carrying fighters from the Wagner private army has been spotted entering Belarus from Russia. The group Belaruski Hajun said at least 60 trucks, buses and other large vehicles crossed into country accompanied by Belarusian police. The group said the vehicles had license plates from Russian-occupied areas of eastern Ukraine, where Wagner mercenaries fought alongside Russian troops until a short-lived mutiny last month. A spokesperson for Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service said Saturday that the force also had observed “some groups” of Wagner fighters crossing from Russia into Belarus. The Belarusian Defense Ministry said Friday that Wagner fighters had begun training Belarusian soldiers.