Ukraine tightens border as Wagner mercenaries 'training' Belarusian troops

DNIPROVSKE, Ukraine -- Ukraine is reinforcing its northeastern border with trenches and mines as concerns rise over Belarus' role following the Wagner mercenary group's mutiny last month against Moscow's top military brass.

Ukraine is ready to "rebuff" Russia's forces including Wagner, said Oleg, 26, as he patrolled the Slavutych border crossing point, closed since February 24, 2022, when Russian forces entered the Chernihiv region from Belarus at the start of the invasion.

"Since we were stabbed in the back from the territory of Belarus, we do not reject... that there may be some movements or deployment of Wagner fighters on Belarusian territory," he told AFP.

Last year, Belarusian leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka allowed Russia to use Belarusian territory to launch the offensive on Ukraine.

'Useful experience'

The Belarusian Defence Ministry confirmed on Friday (July 14) that Wagner instructors were training its troops, following weeks of uncertainty about the whereabouts and future of the group.

"Near Asipovichy, units of territorial defence troops are undergoing training," the ministry said, adding that the forces were learning skills including tactical shooting, movement on the battlefield, engineering and tactical medicine.

In a video released by the ministry, masked Wagner fighters were shown training local forces.

"No doubt it is a very useful experience for our Belarusian army," a serviceman said during an interview.

"We have not taken part in combat since the end of the war in Afghanistan," he said, referring to the Soviet invasion of that country in 1979.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy downplayed the move, saying Ukraine was "closely monitoring developments there from a security perspective, and currently, there are no major threats".

Lukashenka brokered a deal last month to end Wagner's short-lived rebellion in Russia.

Under the agreement, Wagner fighters and their outspoken leader Yevgeny Prigozhin were supposed to move to Belarus, although there have been conflicting reports on Prigozhin's current whereabouts.

The Belarusian Hajun investigative project said that Prigozhin might have spent a night last week near Asipovichy, where the drills were taking place, after an image arose purporting to show him at the camp.

Too close for comfort

Driving south to the nearby village of Dniprovske, one could spot signs of activity in the woods: men in camouflage and fortifications, as well as a dummy figure positioned at the roadside.

The village's main street has two shops, a war memorial and church. A family of storks was nesting on top of a telegraph pole.

Smallholder Viktor Koren, 76, was walking to the shop to buy sour cream.

He drew in the dust with his stick to show how close he lives to the Dnipro river that forms the border.

"Of course I'm nervous. Because it's so close. There is a river near us, a border, and these [jerks] are fighting across the border," he said, referring to Russians.

He slammed Prigozhin for aborting his revolt against Moscow and allying with Lukashenka.

"He was going to Moscow, and he didn't make it there... Why didn't he defeat them?" he said.

Stocking shelves in a grocery store, 20-year-old Ilya Bobok said he was confident that Ukraine could withstand any new attack.

"The first time they [Russians] had the element of surprise. Now I think, it's not going to work. We already have people trained in combat. Brave guys. I think there's nothing to be scared of."

"They may try, but they'll be out of here very quickly."

The shop's owner, Kateryna Bobok, 37, echoed his confidence.

"If you've seen the guys protecting us, how can you be nervous?" she said.

She said she had heard on the news about Wagner's possible presence in Belarus but had seen "no signs that anything has changed".

"It's even a little quieter, which is a little bit alarming."

'Controlled, calm'

Dressed in camouflage and carrying a Kalashnikov, Oleg said he has so far seen no sign of Wagner mercenaries across the border, some 150 metres away.

At the border weeds were growing up through the tarmac and rusted signs about customs rules.

Before the war, about 500 vehicles a day passed through the crossing point.

On the morning of the invasion on February 24, 2022, Ukrainian border guards blew up a road bridge over the Dnipro river, which forms the border with Belarus.

Russian forces managed to enter the Chernihiv region that day anyway, which saw fierce fighting until they withdrew in April 2022. The region is still regularly shelled.

Oleg said Ukrainian forces estimate about 2,000 servicemen from Russia's conventional army to be on Belarusian territory as well as planes and helicopters from Russia's Space Forces.

The situation on the border is "controlled, calm; we don't record any provocations from the Belarusian side", he said.