Russia’s Wagner mercenaries launch joint training with Belarusian military near Polish border

MOSCOW (AP) — Mercenaries from Russia’s military company Wagner have launched joint drills with the Belarusian military near the border with Poland following their relocation to Belarus after their short-lived rebellion. The Belarusian Defense Ministry said Thursday that the weeklong maneuvers will be conducted at a firing range near the border city of Brest and will involve Belarusian special forces. A video released Wednesday appeared to show Wagner’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin for the first time since he led last month’s rebellion. Prigozhin was seen telling his troops they will spend some time in Belarus training its military to help “make the Belarusian army the second strongest army in the world” before deploying to Africa.