Proto Thema has found itself at a secret location where special forces units made up of Russians – former members of Wagner – are practicing guerrilla city tactics.

Special Forces men of the Ukrainian Army agree to show us how they practice daily in a secret location. The orders are clear and succinct, and on our mobile phones geographic tracking is turned off and we are made absolutely clear that filming outdoors is forbidden.

The trainees, all members of a very specific team, are in the area every day and with various combinations of personnel and difficulty are kept in “shape” as a phone call sends them into the most difficult and dangerous battlefields.

The very “special” feature of this particular unit is that it is made up of Russian fighters. Their commander, codenamed “White“, is even a former member of Wagner! This man was actually recruited by Prigozin from Russian prisons during the early months of the war. It was the period when Wagner was “desperately” looking for soldiers to reinforce its lines at Bahmut…

The commander of that unit was captured when the orders from the Russians were to attack, even if it meant no one would be coming back. After the Ukrainians completed the process of interrogation and intelligence gathering, they gave him the opportunity to fight for their side or be put on the list of prisoners of war and used in one of several prisoner exchanges between the two sides.

“White” chose to engage with the Ukrainians and today has gained in the fields both his rank and the support of the Ukrainian armed forces.

It is worth noting that other units of the Russian army have been fighting alongside the Ukrainians for two years. These units had no contacts with Wagner and Prigozhin and are not part of the group of those recruited from Russia’s correctional institutions during the first months of the invasion of Ukrainian territories. Russian agencies have issued warrants for all Russian soldiers and former mercenaries who have joined the Ukrainian forces, and those currently operating in the fields in Kursk and Donbas are the number one target of the elite Russian forces.