EXCLUSIVE: Syria Direct by Fared Al Mahlool: Wagner recruiters in Syria now working for Moscow; mercenaries needed to carry out Putin's "criminal goals" on the international scene

Political.tips welcomes Syrian-based Fared Al Mahlool as a contributing columnist in the global fight for liberty and liberation.

Fared Al Mahlool is a freelance columnist, conflict reporter, researcher, and bomb survivor based in Syria. In addition to covering his country’s ongoing civil war, he uses his skills honed as a Columbia University research assistant to document Russian crimes worldwide.

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Russia uses Syrians to satisfy its imperial ambitions.

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which was supposed to last three days, continues more than two years later. The expectations of the Russian authorities were not met, but the Moscow regime intends to continue waging war against Ukraine at any cost.

Due to the clear failures of the Kremlin’s military objectives, not many Russians wanted to fight (or rather die) among the Russians; Russians did not want to sacrifice their lives for the ambitions of leading their country into an inevitable loss on foreign soil. To compensate for the mounting death toll of those who choose to fight, along with the refusal by many not to, Russia is recruiting foreign mercenaries. This includes civilians and soldiers from Syria.

It has become known that Syrian mercenaries are recruited through travel companies and then sent for training at a military base near the Syrian city of Aleppo and Kuweires Airport. The Russians promised that the Syrians would have gold and diamond mines in Yakutia with a salary of approximately two thousand dollars a month, and they would quickly issue them Russian passports. But after the passport is issued, Syrians are mobilized into the army at the same rapid pace.

Brokers deceptively recruit people to the front, transporting refugees to Europe via Russia and Belarus. According to the newspaper Novaya Gazeta, the Syrian mediator Wassim Al-Dimashqi, who previously participated in recruiting people for the private military company Wagner, is recruiting Syrian citizens to travel to Russia. In Moscow, the Syrians meet their compatriot, Dr. Akram Deeb Tarraf.

Russian propagandists claim that Syrians feel indebted to Russia, which “helped” them in the civil war, and are therefore repaying the debt. But in reality, most volunteers are forced to go to war against Ukraine because of poverty. What is striking is that at the beginning of the invasion, that is, in March 2022, the Russians offered $7,000 to participate in hostilities on the front lines and $3,500 to work in the rear. Now prices have dropped to $2000. Recently, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Agency released a partial roster of Syrian mercenaries taking part in the Moscow regime’s genocide against the Ukrainian people:

Russia's treatment of Syria shows its imperial intentions. The goal of Russia's military intervention in Syria was a "small victorious war" that was supposed to unite Russian voters, as well as the desire to strengthen its influence in the Middle East.

Russia needs the Syrians only as a tool to achieve its criminal goals on the international scene.

Drawing Syrians into the war against Ukraine through deception and underpayment indicates a drain on Russia's resources. Russian propaganda’s imposition of the “debt to Russia” narrative may be interpreted by Russian authorities in the future as a reason to exploit Syrians without payment, given the deplorable state of the Russian economy.