Russian veterans are urging the Kremlin to legalize private military companies. Under current restrictions, mercenaries/contractors fighting in Syria, Ukraine, and elsewhere are not eligible for government-sponsored support options. Veterans’ organizations state that Russian fighters are currently providing private military services in the Central African Republic, Sudan, Yemen, and Libya. These fighters include both fully retired former soldiers as well as “vacationers,” professional soldiers still in the Russian army who appear fighting on battlefields around the world without formal orders from their superior officers.
Source: Kremlin pressed to legalize private military companies
