Russia is using mercenaries to reinforce the front lines.
British military intelligence said on Monday that Russia has used private military contractor Wagner to bolster its frontline forces in the conflict in Ukraine.
“Wagner is lowering its recruitment standards and hiring convicts and former blacklisted individuals, potentially affecting Russian military effectiveness,” the UK Ministry of Defense said in an intelligence update.
The announcement comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin is said to be “struggling to match troops with equipment” as his army suffers from low morale and recruitment struggles amid the invasion of Ukraine.
The UK’s defense chief, Sir Tony Radakin, has said the invasion has resulted in the death or injury of 50,000 Russian soldiers and the destruction of around 1,700 Russian tanks and 4,000 armored fighting vehicles.
He said, “But Russia remains a nuclear power. It has cyber capabilities, it has space capabilities, and it has special underwater programs, so it can threaten the underwater cables that allow the world’s information to pass across the globe.”
Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine in late February, initially hoping for a quick victory.
However, the Russian army faced a stronger than expected defense from Ukraine.
And recently, fighting has been concentrated only in the easternmost region of the country in recent months, and Russia has fallen short of its stated goal of “liberating” Donbass, a separatist region in eastern Ukraine.