In one form or another, mercenary troops that do not directly control their own country exist as long as there is an organized war as such. In the modern form, such armed formations are called one capacious term PMCs - private military companies. In developed countries, PMCs are a well-established business area, involving tens of thousands of people, and its profits are often measured in billions of dollars. The volumes of the world market for PMCs are huge: only according to the estimates of the non-profit organization War on Want, the market of military consulting services has an annual turnover of $ 100 billion to $ 400 billion. Although most of this money settles in the bank accounts of owners and co-owners, military companies do not offend. On average, only during their stay in Iraq, the employees of odious Blackwater received from $ 500 to $ 2500 per day, depending on the position and qualifications. And, for example, the revenue of the largest PMC in the world G4S was $ 10.5 billion in 2015. At the same time, in developing countries, PMCs are a phenomenon from a "gray" zone, dangerously balancing between service to the state and the status of an illegal armed group. The most vivid example of such a lagging development of private military companies is Russia.

It's no secret that Russia has a rich military history. Throughout the centuries, in large and small conflicts, the Russians have argued that, if necessary, they know how to fight as few others. Therefore, the appearance of Russians in the market of private military services was only a matter of time. In view of the rather difficult economic and social period experienced by Russia on the eve of the 21st century, it has not occurred to anyone to use Western experience of PMC for a long time. Coupled with the general devastation at the turn of the millennium, a civil war in Chechnya began in Russia, demanding significant human resources and further destabilizing the society. Only after the end of the Second Chechen campaign in 2009, when thousands of young people who tried the war were left out of work, the first, then still timid talk about PMCs began in the military environment.

But the first serious attempt to occupy a new market was made only a few years later, in 2013. It was then that the first "official" Russian PMC "Slavic Corps" was formed and registered. Since Russian law prohibits mercenary activity as such, it was necessary to register the company in Hong Kong. The company's first contract was the protection of oil fields in Syria, where by that time there had been a war for two years. To fulfill this task, a subdivision consisting of two companies was formed, with a total number of just under 300 people.

However, as a result of ill-conceived logistics and outright negligence of the command, the first battle of the "Slavic Corps" turned out to be the last one for him - the column was shelled and, having received no support, was forced to retreat to the airfield, where it was urgently evacuated to Russia. And here the most interesting begins. Immediately after the landing, all participants of the "Slavic Corps" were arrested by FSB officers on charges of mercenarism. After a long trial, some received realistic terms of up to three years in prison.

All the company executives refused further plans for the development of PMCs. All but one.

Help will come

One of the platoon commanders of the "Slavic Corps" was a former officer of the GRU special forces, then an unknown person named Dmitry Utkin. Very soon, just a year later, his call sign "Wagner" will become a household name, synonymous with the concept of "Russian PMC".

In 2014, when the conflict in the South-East of Ukraine turned into a real civil war, the so-called people's militia (residents of Donbass, disagreeing with the actions of the central authorities of Ukraine) desperately needed military assistance that went far beyond what the Russian Federation could officially provide. Such help was the intervention of a suddenly formed nameless PMC that appeared unexpectedly on the Donbas for both sides of the conflict. The first serious operation of the new military force was the so-called Debaltsevsky cauldron - a large-scale encirclement in February 2015, in which, according to various estimates, there were from 5,000 to 8,000 Ukrainian servicemen. For lack of a name, the new PMCs began to be called by their callsign, at first not even inclined, - "Wagner's PWCs". Then "Wagner" proved to be the best way, acting more effectively than not only the local militia, but also full-time army units, second only to special units of the Russian army. However, in the same year 2015, large-scale military operations in the South-East of Ukraine were completed. But the "Wagner" remained.

To Syria for money

Hegel wrote that history repeats itself twice: the first time in the form of tragedy, and the second in the form of farce. This is the best description of the future fate of the "PWC Wagner". After the end of active fighting in Ukraine, "Wagner" again returned to Syria, this time possessing much more power and administrative resources. The direct connection between Wagner and the Russian Ministry of Defense was evident from the very beginning. Obviously, in the specifics of Russian realities, no purely commercial organization would simply be allowed to participate in Ukrainian events for any money. However, it is impossible to completely exclude the commercial component, because for an ordinary employee the company "Wagner" is still a more or less typical PMC - at first the wages of a mercenary in "sands" could reach 300,000 rubles a month or more. However, as the flow of employees and the company's authority increased, the prices dropped significantly, almost twice, and even then with the pitfalls. And about that relatives could receive the insurance in case of death of the fighter, anybody already also did not think.

But back to Wagner. Having secured support at the highest level and proving his loyalty to the state, Dmitry Utkin launched a truly large-scale activity in Syria. Since the fall of 2015, the number of employees of the company residing in the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic has practically not fallen below the 1,000 mark. This is despite the fact that the terms of the contract every three months provided for rotation. That is, the total number of employees of this company can exceed three thousand people. Along with Russian VCS, "PMC Wagner" became the main force that helps Bashar Assad to retain power in the country. Russian mercenaries showed themselves as self-sufficient and highly motivated military formations capable of effectively performing tasks of any complexity. It is the "Wagner" who belongs to the authorship of one of the most famous operations of the Syrian company - the liberation of Palmyra.

Of course, one must pay for efficiency. In war, the main bargaining chip is human life, and in this respect Wagner was surprisingly generous. According to the estimates of the direct participants in the events, the average level of combat losses reaches 30-35%. Already in the first months of Russia's participation in the Syrian conflict rumors began to spread that Wagner, with the tacit approval of the Kremlin, was simply utilizing the most passionate citizens of Russia. However, even this did not destroy the aura of mystery and youthful romanticism of Russian PMCs. Along with the flow of those who wish to try themselves in the role of "soldier of fortune", the number of companies supposedly providing such an opportunity has grown. Sometimes, as in the case of the Turan PMC, it was a matter of pure fiction, generated by the error of journalists. Sometimes the work of regular special units (MTR) of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation acting under cover was issued for the PMC. The most famous example of such a chimera is the Patriot PMC.

Expansion of Russian PMCs

"Black Thursday" of the Russian PMC was on February 8, 2018, when a column of several hundred "Wagner" was destroyed by artillery fire and aviation of the armed forces of the coalition led by the United States. Then, according to various estimates, 200 to 600 people died. The reasons for such a serious failure are not officially named so far and are unlikely to ever be presented to a wide audience. One of the most cynical and at the same time realistic causes that led to such blatant losses was the conflict between the leadership of Wagner and the top officials of the Russian Defense Ministry. The reason for the conflict could have been anything, but, most likely, Wagner believed in his own irreplaceability and decided to show a character, which the official authorities do not like. Proceeding from this, it can be assumed that Wagner's "golden age" has remained in the past and that in the near future he will receive increased attention and pressure from state structures. And since the need for PMC services, like the market opportunity for their provision, will not go anywhere in Russia, very soon we will be able to observe the beginning of healthy competition and the inevitable entry of Russians into the international market for private military services. However, this has already begun.

"Black Thursday" of the Russian PMC was on February 8, 2018, when a column of several hundred "Wagner" was destroyed by artillery fire and aviation of the armed forces of the coalition led by the United States. Then, according to various estimates, 200 to 600 people died. The reasons for such a serious failure are not officially named so far and are unlikely to ever be presented to a wide audience. One of the most cynical and at the same time realistic causes that led to such blatant losses was the conflict between the leadership of Wagner and the top officials of the Russian Defense Ministry. The reason for the conflict could have been anything, but, most likely, Wagner believed in his own irreplaceability and decided to show a character, which the official authorities do not like. Proceeding from this, it can be assumed that Wagner's "golden age" has remained in the past and that in the near future he will receive increased attention and pressure from state structures. And since the need for PMC services, like the market opportunity for their provision, will not go anywhere in Russia, very soon we will be able to observe the beginning of healthy competition and the inevitable entry of Russians into the international market for private military services. However, this has already begun.

PMC FDG Corp. was founded in 1996, but it underwent significant organizational changes after the arrival of former Russian officer Dmitry Smirnov in 2010 in the leadership of one of the earliest witnessed appearances of Russians in the market of serious PMCs. Since then, the company has been successfully operating in Afghanistan and Iraq, carrying out mainly one-off special operations. However, there are also "pure" PMCs, consisting only of Russians. For example, the company RSB-Group, registered in Russia as a private security company, in fact claims a standard list of PMC services. True, while the organization's website emphasizes that the company does not engage in mercenarism and does not participate in military conflicts on the side of other states. Obviously, this method is used in view of the specifics of Russian legislation, which, by the way, is being tried for a number of years in the direction of legalizing PMCs. And until this happened, those wishing to work in the market of private military services are forced to look for loopholes and ways of circumventing legislative obstacles.

Meanwhile, there are already cases when foreign companies show interest in Russian specialists. For example, Centurion PMC, initially claiming to be a consulting company, is recruiting Russian reserve officers from among the elite units. As a work, future employees are offered not standard participation in military operations and security of facilities, but consulting of the armed forces, police and private security services in the countries of the second and third world. In practice, depending on the qualification, the employee can be offered only analytical and audit work, which does not even involve going abroad. Perhaps, it is this business model that turns out to be a "golden mean", allowing to divide the commercial and political spheres.

In general, considering the specifics of Russian private military companies, two obvious facts can be noted. On the one hand, the Russian authorities, and in particular special services, do not want to allow the activities of "independent" PMCs, while continuing to use similar structures to achieve their political goals. On the other hand, in Russia there live a lot of people who are unsettled in life, who have colossal combat experience and who want to sell this experience on a commercial basis. As a result, a rather specific situation turns out, when acting with a lot of legal restrictions, Russian PMCs have significant development potential and are able to have a serious impact on the market of private military services. To date, the volume of this market, according to approximate estimates, is about $ 400 billion. Even now, in a semi-legal position, Russian mercenaries due to a combination of high professional qualities and low salary expectations can begin dumping, bringing a lot of inconvenience to the old market players. In the same case, if the activities of PMCs in Russia are fully legalized, it is possible to speak with great probability about the forthcoming redistribution of a market of such a scale that it is likely that the geopolitical situation is aggravating right up to direct clashes between representatives of the United States and Russia.