Russia's shadow warriors: Mercenary groups and state sponsorship

Beyond conventional armed forces, reservist units, and prisoners participating in war activities in Ukraine, Russia possesses numerous mercenary groups funded by companies and state agencies. Its ranks include martial artists and extreme right-wing football fans.

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Independent media had previously reported about the Uran battalion, which receives financial support from the Russian state space corporation Roskosmos. The Sojuz unit, comprised of professional martial artists, draws financial resources from the state bank Sberbank and the atomic energy agency Rosatom. Before his death, the founder of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, pointed to private military companies associated with the energy giant Gazprom.

Now, the independent portal iStories reports that Viktor Shendrik, who is the head of the security department of the Russian state railway monopoly, Russian Railways, is sponsoring the battalion Española. This is a paramilitary group made up of Russian hooligans, active in Ukraine.

Española, formed as a volunteer battalion of football fans with clear extreme right-wing views, initially operated as part of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic". In February 2024, Española announced itself as a private military company, having reconnaissance units, assault units, artillery, electronic warfare, drones, and sniper units.

In early December of last year, Russian leader Vladimir Putin signed a decree increasing the army's size by 15 percent. This decision is related to "growing threats to Russia" concerning the "special military operation and the ongoing expansion of NATO".

According to the current decree, the Russian armed forces number 2,209,130 people, of which 1,320,000 are soldiers. In the previous, now outdated decree, it was indicated that the army numbered 2,039,758 people, including 1,150,628 military personnel. The expired decree was valid from January 1, 2023, and anticipated an increase in the number of soldiers by 137,000.

Source: iStories, Meduza, PAP