Slavonic Corps - Printable Version

+- Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora)
+-- Forum: Deep Politics Forum (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-1.html)
+--- Forum: Black Operations (https://deeppoliticsforum.com/fora/forum-9.html)
+--- Thread: Slavonic Corps (/thread-11678.html)

Slavonic Corps - Magda Hassan - 17-11-2013

PMC is a Company performing its statutory tasks in high risk areas, in particular in areas of military actions where actions of the Company itself and of its employees are rather deterrent than attacking so they allow some preventive options. These measures should be necessarily interpreted in favor of primary military forces of the country, according to the general order.

Private Military Company "Slavonic Corps" is founded by professional servicemen, by officers in reserve having rich practical combat and command experience.

The Company's activities are in strict correspondence to Russian law and to the law of those countries where the Company protects Russian companies' interests. Our principle - we never participate in armed conflicts as mercenaries and never consult entities, groups or individuals having even a slightest relation to terrorist organizations. Further we never take part in events related to overthrow of governments, violating human rights of civilian population and in any other actions violating International Law and Conventions.
To carry out specific operations within territory of different countries we have formed an employment pool consisting of Special Task Forces ex-officers from different corps and having tremendous personal and operative experience.

The "Slavonic Corps" will begin its mission only after of official approval from control authorities and receiving all necessary licenses, certificates and allowances for security and other activities in the host country.
We have significant advantages over similar Russian and foreign Companies.

Our team strictly complies with the Law and regulations of the host country.

Only in the "Slavonic Corps" you will find working ex-officers and higher quality professionals possessing unique military professions and having experience of work in Iraq, Afghanistan, Eastern Africa, Tajikistan, Northern Caucasus, Serbia etc.

Email: slavcorp.kadry@gmail.ru
Phone:
8 (495) 928-29-84
+7 (909) 987-02-44
+7 (909) 986-93-95

http://slavcorps.org/en/about

Slavonic Corps - Magda Hassan - 17-11-2013

The Last Battle of the "Slavonic Corps"

The story of the Russian mercenaries who went to war against Syrian rebels.

[URL="http://www.fontanka.ru/2013/11/14/060/"]By Denis Korotkov
Originally published by Fontanka on November 14, 2013[/URL]Translated by Pierre VauxNovember 16, 2013Tweet

A Syrian rebel group claims that it has ambushed and killed a group of Russian mercenaries who may have been working for a Chinese security contractor. The jihadist fighters from an Al Qaeda affiliate "Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS)" claim to have killed the mercenaries in a battle near Homs. At least one of the mercenaries, however, has been videotaped alive and well, and living back in Russia.
The large and well-respected St. Petersburg newspaper, Fontanka, has published an article,translation by The Interpreter, entitled "St. Petersburg Sends Contractors to Syria." It details the investigation that uncovered the existence of Russian mercenaries defending sensitive installations important to the Assad government in Syria. The contractors appear to have been recruited in St. Petersburg by a company based in Hong Kong.
We also know that the mercenaries appear to have been operating in As-Sukhnah, east of Palmyra, on the road between Deir Ez Zor and Homs. Jihadists have long wanted to capture the town, and nearby Palmyra, because securing this road would link their forces from the east to the west. The Assad regime, on the other hand, has had difficulty sparing the resources to defend the position, as it is far away from the major cities which are heavily embattled. According to the initial investigation by Fontanka, the mission of the mercenaries was to secure key regime assets, away from the front lines, in order for Assad forces to concentrate on removing "bandits" in other areas. However, it appears that the oil fields that the Russians were supposed to be guarding were in rebel control, and the team was really tasked with getting them back.
The following translation is an update from Fontanka. It says that one of the key players in the military contracting company is a reservist officer in the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), lieutenant colonel Vyacheslav Kalashnikov. The FSB, therefore, were aware on some level that the Moran Security Group was sending Russian mercenaries to Syria to fight for Assad. However, the mercenary group was shut down and several mercenaries were arrested upon their return to Russia. A major Russian contractor says that this was not an FSB mission, but a mission designed to look like an FSB mission. The insinuation is that a pro-rebel group hired the Russians in order to lead them into a trap, kill them, and show their bodies on television.
All of the pictures on the original Fontanka article were also posted in the one we already translated. Instead, these pictures of the Russian mercenaries were posted on a Russian social network (except the one that states it was from Fontanka). Ed.

For the first time in the history of Russia, the FSB has made arrests for the exotic criminal charge of mercenary activities. Having attempted to form a two thousand strong "Slavonic Corps" on Syrian soil, the executives of a private military company from St. Petersburg have wound up in the cells at Lefortovo. The rank and file soldiers of fortune having been telling Fontanka about their first and last battle and dissatisfaction at the failure of their mission: they are not asking anyone for remuneration for their unpaid service in the war now.
We've known for a while about Russian citizens who travel to Syria to fight against Bashar al-Assad because of their religious beliefs. And we found out that Russian mercenaries can fight on the side of the incumbent government when, in October 2013, the opposition distributed documents on the internet alleging that they had killed a resident of the Krasnoyarsk region, Alexei Malyuta, in a skirmish near the city of Homs. Having ascertained that our fellow citizens really did go to Syria for armed service with the St. Petersburg-based company Slavonic Corps Limited, Fontanka made inquiries about the number of our countrymen who participated in the venture. It turned out that more than ten people had left the banks of the Neva to seek their fortune and wages with Arab bullets. Some of them agreed to an interview. Asking to remain anonymous: "There's no point in that. We're not seeking the limelight, and we've given our testimony to the FSB anyway. But we will not be silent, so that others do not fall like we did. We made it back, we were simply lucky."
How to go to war
Safehouses, code words, and other conspiracy theory tools are not needed. Since the spring of 2013, adverts for the Slavonic Corps,' recruiting former soldiers with combat experience to work on long trips abroad, have been appearing at relevant sites all across Russia. Many responded. Not all retired paratroopers and special forces soldiers or laid off SOBR and OMON officers have found their feet in civilian life. To some, five days a week in an office is normal, but to others, it's sheer hell. And not everyone who knows how to handle a machine gun or sniper rifle with skill has the talents of a businessman. The metropolis got boring, the notorious jaunties' were over, and commanding access gates in private security was humiliating and poorly paid. Former riot cops and officers of the interior troops, acting as bodyguards, were interested in the offer to earn 5,000 US dollars a month for the protection of certain "energy facilities." That's nothing out of the ordinary, almost everyone along the North Caucasus and Tajikstan has had the arduous experience of "solving problems" with unsettling people involved in crime. 20,000 dollars for disability and 40,000 for death: that's acceptable.
After a phone call they met in the street with the head of Moran Security Group, Vyacheslav Kalashnikov, a lieutenant colonel in the FSB reserves, who introduced himself as a general, and explained the conditions. Then, at an interview with a recruiting specialist in the Baltic Shooting Centre on Alexander Blok Street, Building 5, forms were filled and passports ordered.
Then came an invitation to Moscow in September 2013. This time the candidates were spoken to in the premises of Moran Security Group on Potapovsky Lane, Building 5. They were told that they would have to go to Syria with a company called the Slavonic Corps.' They were warned to be at the ready. No sooner than they had returned to St. Petersburg, they received a call: "It is urgent that you come to Moscow. It's time to fly off on a business trip. Bring only your passport, don't wear or bring anything military, enemy surveillance doesn't take naps!"
A contract with a phantom
Contracts with Hong Kong's Slavonic Corps Limited were literally signed on knees on the platform at Leningrad railway station: "Come on come on, time is running out." Of around twenty candidates who arrived, three, having seen Hong Kong on the details, turned around and set off for home instead of Syria. The rest took their chances. They were bribed with the promise to pay 4,000 dollars every coming month, and a solemn vow to transfer the first tranche in the next few days. Moreover, the men were unaccustomed to paperwork, and had all the more faith in the contract as they did not believe they would find anyone who would want to cheat them.
Then there was a flight to Beirut in Lebanon and a journey by car to Damascus. From the Syrian border they were accompanied by local guardsmen. After a stay in a local guesthouse they flew to a military base in Lattakia.
A tank for a security guard
"A large field between Lattakia and Tartous, surrounded by barbed wire. That is where our battalion and the Syrian reservists were stationed. It used to be a racecourse. We were housed in the former stables. By October there were 267 people from the Slavonic Corps', split into two companies. One company was made up of Kuban Cossacks, the other had people from all over Russia; there were 10 or 12 men from Petersburg. The bosses said that the numbers of the corps in Syria was expected to reach up to 2,000 men."
In addition to assault rifles, the battalion received machine guns and grenade launchers. They had anti-aircraft guns, 1939 models. The mortars were from 1943. Crews were formed for the four T-72 tanks and some BMP (infantry fighting vehicles). The question of how appropriate the weapons were, for the task of protecting "facilities," came up quickly, even from the most gullible, and was addressed.
"Did you come to fight or to guard? Those who guard wear the attire of endless household labour." Those were the words of the commander's reply. The manager of the project was Vadim Gusev, known to many as the deputy director of Moran Security Group.
Who we are fighting for
This was never understood. "When they spoke to us in Russia, they explained that we were going on a contract with the Syrian government, they convinced us that everything was legal and in order. Like, our government and the FSB were on board and involved in the project. When we arrived there, it turned out that we were sent as gladiators, under a contract with some Syrian or other, who may or may not have a relationship with the governmentâ€¦ That meant that we were the private army of a local kingpin. But there was no turning back. As they said, a return ticket costs money, and we'll work through it, whether we like it or not." The problem came when they invited the soldiers of the Slavonic Corps' to retain control over the centre of the oil industry in the town of Deir ez-Zor. In order to be in controlling of it, we had to reach it. More than 500 kilometres across territory occupied by government troops, by the opposition or by completely unknown forces.
The campaign of the Slavonic Corps'
The first and only combat operation of the Slavonic Corps' went badly from the very beginning. According to one of our interviewees, who had to join a BMP crew, the 1979 production vehicles provided to them were complete trash, and they did not succeed in bringing them up to battle-worthiness. The fully prepared T-72s turned out to have been replaced, by the Syrians, with rusty, unfit-for-battle T-62s, which likewise had to be abandoned. They set out to campaign on October 15, on Hyundai buses and JMC jeeps lined with homemade armour. They stuck on portraits of Bashar al-Assad and Syrian flags, and drove off.

Maybe they could have just made it, but along the way the valiant and unpredictable Syrian Air Force interfered. The helicopter pilot, who either wanted to take a closer look at the convoy, or scare them with a simulated attack, managed to find the power lines, amidst the endless sky out in the middle of the desert, tangled in them, and fell onto the column. One of the legionnaires' was left with a minor injury, and another, with a bent assault rifle. The mutilated chopper pilot had to be dragged to a military airfield in Homs, the pace was lost.
An alien war

Two days were spent at the airport for some reason. On the 18th, with sudden alarm, they dove into their vehicles. It seems as that the rebels had fallen upon the militia in the neighbouring town of Sukhnah, and the troops had to help them out. After about three or four hours, they finally closed in, somewhere along the road, amidst some burning town, they came under fire. They spread out and took up defensive positions. The Cossack company headed off to the left and got bogged down, they had got into a fight with someone who was not a supporter of Bashar al-Assad. They fired mortars, but they didn't manage to nail the opposing column. A government SPG (self-propelled gun) approached, giving fire support. Assad's aircraft bombed the enemy. The militants, who, according to various sources, numbered between 2,000 and 6,000, proved to be tenacious and, by all accounts, began to surround the battalion and put them in a vice. The Slavonic Corps', not wanting to die in vain for the ideals of the Syrian state, jumped into their vehicles and began to retreat. It's most probable that during this retreat, Alexei Malyuta's bag was lost and fell into the hands of the regime's opponents.
It could be regarded as a great success that, out of the whole corps, a total of six people were wounded, two of them seriously. We can see at once that all of the wounded were removed from the battlefield and returned home with all the others. "We were saved by a sandstorm, we were enveloped by it on our retreat, but it hid us from the local mujahedeen. There was so much sand that you couldn't see anything. But thanks to that, we are alive."
The end of the mission
The return journey to Homs, and then to the base at Lattakia, was grim. The Syrians' attitude towards the Russian legionnaires had changed markedly. They recalled a loud argument at the airport between Vadim Gusev and the Syrian employer' of the Slavonic Corps': it was clear that they had different views on the subsequent plan. Everybody heard their yells, including mentions of dollars, and more specifically, of 4 million dollars, that would have to be worked off. Nevertheless, the battalion returned to Lattakia. While in September, the Syrians practically welcomed them with flowers, they now looked on them, if not as enemies, then certainly not as heroes. They watched frostily. Shortly, they began to disarm; the corps had to surrender their heavy weapons. They would not part with their assault rifles until the end. They say that a Russian in Syria without an assault rifle is of no use to anyone.
Welcomed with honour
Despite the fact that, according to the contract, the assignment was supposed to last five months, in the last days of October the personnel were loaded onto two chartered planes and sent to Moscow. They were not expecting such a reception to be awaiting their arrival at Vnuknovo. As they disembarked the aircraft one by one, each fell into the hands of FSB officers. There was a quick inspection, the removal of SIM cards and any other media, and a brief questioning as witnesses. Then followed the removal of their passports, non-disclosure forms, and tickets home. Vadim Gusev, who had flown in business class and left the plane first, remained in the hands of the investigators.
As they explained at the Moran Security Group, he and another employee of the company, Evgeny Sidorov, who was responsible for human resources, were arrested in a criminal case brought by the FSB's metropolitan command under the never-before applied Article 359 of the Criminal Code mercenary activities.
There is no money and there never will be
The caveat is that the 4,000 dollars, which should have been paid to each security specialist' of the Slavonic Corps' at the beginning of the second month of the assignment failed to reach almost anyone. And now, in different corners of Russia, there are around 200 very angry men who are determined to get their money back. But Gusev and Sidorov, in Lefortovo, are not held responsible. Sergei Kramskoy, whose signature is on the contracts, has never been seen by any of the legionnaires. The Petersburgers say that they met with the managers of the Moran Security Group, Vyacheslav Kalashnikov and Boris Chikin, who recruited them for work in Syria. They have allegedly explained that this is not their business, that they have no relationship with the Slavonic Corps, and that here is no money and there never will be.
In the words of the professional: This is a crazy scheme
After asking Vyacheslav Kalashnikov several times to speak on the subject of Syria, and having received no answer, Fontanka turned to the head of Russia's largest private military company, the "RSB Group," for comment. Oleg Krinitsyn is certain: the Syrian story of the Slavonic Corps was a crazy scheme from the start.
"The widely advertised campaign to recruit mercenaries for Syria initially sounded like a stunt, a kind of PR campaign. Later on, people believed it and were drawn to their dream to make money. But not all of them understood that this money was dirty, and possibly bloody. Before sending people to a country where there is active fighting, where there is a virtual layer cake' of the Syrian Army, the opposition fighters, al-Qaeda, al-Nusra etc, it's essential to prepare them, as well as to understand how to get them out of there. Among those guys, photographed against a backdrop of Syrian equipment, festooned with weapons, I noticed a few of our former employees, who had been dismissed because of their poor moral character. I saw guys with criminal records amongst them. This once again confirms that the aim of the recruiters was not to attract high quality professionals, but just to plug a hole' with cannon fodder, and fast. And the boys were sent on contracts that resembled contracts for suicide missions. Right away, people signed a contract that included a will to bury their remains in their homeland, or if that proved impossible, in the nation where they died, and then be reburied in Russia. Dreadful.

Fontanka
"And it must be remembered, that no one has repealed the article on mercenary activities.' Armed men from an offshore company, the Slavcorps,' without any security license or official authorization for weapons, went off to defend something some hazy objective from uncertain threats in a foreign country in a time of strife. The soldiers used heavy weaponry, old military equipment, sniper rifles, Kalashnikovs. There was a uniform provided. One of an American design, another was reminiscent of that of the Syrian Army special forces. What was the security purpose of such mimicry? The answer is obvious: they would use the Russian guys face down. And then TV would never have Malyuta, the farmer from Krasnodar who, while swearing cheerfully, cracks a rotten branch over the head of another merry colleague in Syria. Instead of that, there would have been images of the bloody bodies of Slavs killed in Syrian Army uniform. In principle, that ought to provoke even more aggressive action from the Americans and British in arming and supporting the Syrian rebels.
"The contract wasn't drawn up with a government body, but with some Syrian oligarch, supposedly with Assad's consent. They set off to protect the oil fields, but when they arrived it turned out that they needed to recapture those fields. And when our boys had the good sense not to get involved in the carnage, they simply and unabashedly "passed them over" to the militants, and they tried to encircle and annihilate a group of Russians with mortars and small arms. This isn't our war, it isn't our country, this was purely mercenary. But the people who went there are not to blame, they didn't fully comprehend that they were not falling into some beautiful fairy tale, but to a place where a fighter survives for an average of 2 to 3 weeks. They were sent like lambs to the slaughter. You need to understand that we are Russians; we're aliens in that country. The local fighters (on either side) would have "given them up" right away. That is basically what happened.
"I do not exclude the possibility that someone from the management of Moran Security Group, and the affiliation of that company with the Slavonic Corps is quite clear, could take this gamble to plug the financial hole left after the seizure of their ship the Myre Seadiver in Nigeria. But a military officer, understanding life and death, would never send his people there.
"In the RSB Group we have received offers to work in Syria more than once, and from different sides (Free Syrian Army or just obscure businessmen,) and have been offered serious money, but we will not go. When the RSB Group is offered a contract with the government, then we will work, but we will only work on a formal contract with a government body. We are prepared to professionally and legally secure any installation, seaport, airport, television and radio station, right up to the Russian embassy."
The FSB
A duty officer gave an immediate response to a reporter's question about Syria and the Slavonic Corps': "The FSB public relations centre has no such information available."
Denis Korotkov, Fontanka.ru
P.S.
The battle at Sukhnah, the view from the opposition
The mujahedeen of the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham conducted a successful operation in the Homs area. Assault units attacked a group of infidels in the village of Sukhnah. In the course of the successful attack one major checkpoint was capture. Another two checkpoints were surrounded. The fighting continued and the Mujahedeen managed to eliminate more than a hundred Assad supporters and Shiites. Among the defeated were Russian mercenaries.
The battle of Sukhnah, the view from a Damascus official
In Homs the particularly fierce fighting between the Syrian Army and gangs of rebels in the area of al-Sukhnah carried on, where for several days the terrorist armed groups were trying to take over military installations. On October 17 they were able to make headway by attracting multiple groups of bandits, including arrivals from Raqqa. But by the 20ththe rebels had been pushed back. Three Jaysh al-Islam terrorist hideouts in the vicinity of al-Sukhnah were struck by military aircraft. As a result, more than 25 militants were killed. On October 20, army units managed to eliminate many terrorists during the fighting. This included two commanders from the Chechen republic and Egypt, going by the nicknames of Abu Hamza al-Sheshan and Abu Musaab al-Masri, and a Saudi citizen, one of Bin Laden's personal friends, Dzhafina Omar al-Uteybi.
http://www.interpretermag.com/the-last-battle-of-the-slavonic-corps/

Slavonic Corps - Magda Hassan - 17-11-2013

[URL="http://www.fontanka.ru/2013/11/14/060/infograph.1.html"] [Image: 2.jpg]

Slavonic Corps - Magda Hassan - 17-11-2013

English translation of much of the above post. Or you can use Google translate.

Quote:
St. Petersburg Sends Contractors to Syria
Russians working for Hong Kong contractor discovered fighting Syrian rebels.
[URL="http://www.fontanka.ru/2013/10/30/099/"]By Denis Korotkov (Ð”ÐµÐ½Ð¸Ñ ÐšÐ¾Ñ€Ð¾Ñ‚ÐºÐ¾Ð²)
Originally published by Fontanka on October 30, 2013[/URL]Translated by Catherine A. FitzpatrickNovember 15, 2013Tweet

A Syrian rebel group claims that it has ambushed and killed a group of Russian mercenaries who may have been working for a Chinese security contractor. The jihadist fighters from an Al Qaeda affiliate "Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS)" claim to have killed the mercenaries in a battle near Homs. At least one of the mercenaries, however, has been videotaped alive and well, and living back in Russia.
The mercenaries reportedly worked for the Slavonic Corps, a contractor registered in Hong Kong that operates, "in high risk areas, in particular in areas of military actions where actions of the Company itself and of its employees are rather deterrent than attacking so they allow some preventive options. These measures should be necessarily interpreted in favor of primary military forces of the country, according to the general order." According to documents published below, the Slavonic Corps had signed an agreements with the Moran Security Group, which is, "an international group of companies offering premier security, transportation, medical, rescue, and consulting services. "
Below is a translation from an article published on Fontanka, one of the most popular and most respected newspapers from St. Petersburg. We are also in the process of translating another article published by Fontanka. It says that the mercenary group was working with the head of Moran Security Group, FSB lieutenant colonel in the reserve Vyacheslav Kalashnikov. The FSB, therefore, were aware that the group was sending Russian fighters to Syria. However, the mercenary group was shut down and several mercenaries were arrested upon their return to Russia.
UPDATE: We have posted the latest update from Fontanka, The Last Battle of the "Slavonic Corps": The story of the Russian mercenaries who went to war against Syrian rebels.
- Ed.

Rumors about armed Russian citizens taking part in the Syrian conflict on the side of Bashar Assad turn out to be true. Fontanka has confirmed this in the course of verifying information about the death of Russians who had supposedly gone to war on a contract with a Hong Kong company. The surprise is that the recruitment center turned out to be in St. Petersburg, and the Russian mercenary killed in Syria turned out to be a soldier who was alive and working for a private security company on the 9th day after the notice of his death.
In the last 10 days of October, a number of foreign and Russia media outlets reported that Russian mercenaries were fighting on the side of Bashar Assad in Syria. Mujahideen of the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham [ISIS] reported a successful attack on the "kefirs" in the province of Homs, during the course of which about 100 enemies were annihilated. As the rebels claim on their web pages, among those murdered were several fighters from Russia, the name of one of whom was confirmed: Aleksei Malyuta from the city of Abinsk in Krasnodar Krai. In confirmation, a photo and documents proving Malyuta's membership in the armed company of Moran Security Group and his contract with a Hong Kong private military company Slavonic Corps Limited.

The American TV show The Blaze inquired about the number of Russian mercenaries in Syria. The Ukrainian press was outraged at the cover-up of the incident in the Russian press. Meanwhile, commentators doubted the authenticity of the information, noting that the contracts didn't look like real ones, and seemed fake.
Moran Group: We Are Not Involved
The Moran Security Group ID supposedly taken from the body of the mercenary killed then prompted a simple inquiry. A Fontanka correspondent contacted a representative of the company. The editors of Fontanka had contacts among the leaders of Moran Security Group, well known in Russia and abroad as a security firm; journalists had constantly been in touch with the firm in the last year. We will recall that in October 2012, a guard ship the Myre Sea-Diver belonging to Moran Security Group was seized in Lagos in Nigeria by local Navy forces; the crew was completely released only in October 2013, so Fontanka took an interest in the fate of our sailors.
One of the directors of Moran Security Group , Aleksei Badikov, whose signature is on the ID, explained that Aleksei Malyuta, in 2012 and early 2013, really did work at the company, and took part in operations to free ships from threats of pirate attacks, but then resigned. The Hong-Kong based Slavonic Corps Limited did not have any relationship to Moran Security, and Moran Security did not carry out any activity on the territory of Syria.
Hong Kong-St. Petersburg
The attempt to contact Slavonic Corps led to the banks of the Neva River instead of South East Asia. Although the first company was registered on 18 January 2012 in Hong Kong, Sergei Kramskoy, whose permanent residence is in St. Petersburg, is listed as its director. It is not hard to establish that Sergei Kramskoy heads simultaneously two St. Petersburg companies with the name Slavonic Corps, founded in January and April of 2012. The only founder of both companies is the St. Petersburg resident Sergei Sokharev. A Fontanka correspondent found his telephone number [and made the call.]
"Tell me, please, are the Slavonic Corps companies owned by you connected in any way to the Slavonic Corps Ltd. in Hong Kong, which sent mercenaries to Syria, or with the Moran Security Group?" asked our correspondent.
"No, they are not connected at all. Why have you decided that?" said Sokharev.
"We supposed that they might be connected since these companies with the same name are headed by the very same person, Sergei Kramskoy, and founded at approximately the same time. Furthermore, as Syrian rebels report, the ID of the company Moran Security was found on the mercenary Russian," we said.
"They are not connected at all. I don't know anything about Hong Kong, and Kramskoy was fired from the company Slavonic Corps. The company Slavonic Corps, Ltd. is my own project, and is not connected to Syria or the Moran Group," said Sokharev.
"Could you tell us the telephone number of Sergei Kramskoy?" we asked.
"Well, I don't know, I'd have to ask the president, Vyacheslav Vasilyevichâ€¦"
"Do you mean Vyacheslav Vasilyevich Kalashnikov, the president of the Moran Security Group?"
"Yes."
"So the Slavic Corps, Kramskoy and the Moran Security Group are somehow connected?"
"No."
In order to explain the contradictions, Sergei Sokharev offered to meet the next day in person and promised to call back. So far, he hasn't called back.
No one answered the telephones indicated on the web site of the Slavonic Corps. The site has a description of the company's activity "The private military company Slavonic Corps was created by professional soldiers and officers in the reserve who have large practical combat and command experienceâ€¦ Only officers in the reserve work at Slavonic Corps, professionals of the highest quality, possessing unique military skills, and also having experience working in Iraq, Afghanistan, Eastern Africa, Tajikistan, North Caucasus, Serbia, and so on."

Also indicated was that Slavonic Corps signed the International Code of Conduct of Private Security Providers (IcoC).
Once Again, Moran
After reviewing the IcoC site, a reporter confirmed that the code really was signed by Slavonic Corps, Ltd. On 1 June 2012.

The location of the company was shown as St. Petersburg. The deputy general director , Boris Chikin, signed on behalf of the company.
Boris Chikin is a famous man. A St. Petersburg resident, he is one of the best experts in practical shooting, the author of a manual on training for body-guards. He is also one of the founders and heads of the Moran Security Group. Boris Chikin replied to a reporter's call:
"Boris Georgevich, can you explain what the company Slavonic Corps Limited does?" we asked.
"I don't have any connection whatsoever to that company," said Chikin.
"But don't you hold the post of deputy general director of the Slavonic Corps and didn't you sign on 1 June the International Code of Conduct of Private Security Companies?" we asked.
"There was some kind of strange story there. I was asked to do it, and that's it. Neither I nor the Moran Security Group have any relationship to the activity of the Slavonic Corps," said Chikin.
Fontanka has no grounds to doubt the truth of Boris Chikin's words. In the final analysis, the fact that Slavonic Corps, Ltd. is registered at the address: Aleksandr Blok St. no. 5 at the Baltic Shooting Center, whose director is indicated on reference sites as Boris Chikin, is perhaps a coincidence. Just as the almost identical wording of descriptions of job vacancies at Moran Security Group and Slavic Corps on web sites:
Credit: http://www.icoc-psp.orgThe Elusive Recruiter
Sergei Kramskoy managed to remain elusive. Our sources at Moran Security told us that they knew of such a person, although he did not work in their company, they had seen him and talked to him but they didn't have his phone number. Sergei Sokharev, who, according to the Unified State Registry of Legal Persons is the single owner of the companies headed by Kramskoy, was also unable to find his telephone number. The web master of Slavonic Corps' site would not reveal the contact information and name of his client. The head of the AB Group personnel agency who recruited people for Slavonic Corps explained that of course he had Serge Kramskoy's phone number, and promised to share it. He asked us to call back later and then turned off the phone. Sergei Kramskoy has not answered his home telephone.
Documents Shown to Fighters are Authentic
Even so, Fontanka managed to confirm that Aleksei Malyutka's ID and his contract with the Slavonic Corps in Hong Kong were authentic, and that Malyuta himself was really in Syria in October 2013 and was carrying arms. His brother Sergei, with whom journalists were put in touch with the help of the Moran Security Group, told this to a reporter. But to our surprise, Aleksei Malyuta himself turned out to be alive and well. During the phone call with the Fontanka correspondents, the brothers were celebrating his return and the 9th day since the report of his own death [according to the Russian custom]. The brother handed Aleksei the phone and he wished everyone to celebrate his 9th day.
Sergei Malyutka, acting head of the security group in Syria, agreed to answer several questions. But he was terse.
"Sergei, tell us, in October 2013, did you make a trip to Syria?" we asked.
"Yes," he replied.
"On a contract with which firm?"
"Slavonic Corps."
"Did everyone return?"
"Yes."
"What jobs did you perform?"
"Guard and defense of economic facilities of the Syrian Republic. The point was to free the sub-divisions of the Syrian army from these duties, so that they could take part in the battle against the bandits," said Sergei.
"Did you and your colleagues take part in clashes?"
"Of course not."
"How did it happen that some of Aleksei's documents wound up in the possession of representatives of the opposition?" we asked.
"They were simply stolen. The guys went to the store to buy groceries. A backpack that was left unattended for a short while was stolen," he said.
Skeptical journalists were left not completely satisfied with the conversation and asked Aleksei Malyuta to send a more reliable proof of his existence on this earth in order to publish it in Fontanka.ru.
Here is his reply: (see the video in a pop-up window)

Fontanka does not dare to reproach the men for a certain relaxation after returning from a battle zone.
Note:

According to information obtained by Fontanka.ru, at the present time, all the security guards who went to Syria at the end of September 2013 on contracts with Slavonic Corps, Ltd. have returned to Russia. The short stay of their tour of duty was caused, according to our information, by the failure of the hosts to fulfill their financial obligations, which caused problems with the housing and feeding of the fighters from Slavonic Corps. The contract was broken and the employees recalled.

Slavonic Corps - Magda Hassan - 17-11-2013

Seems to be a subsidiary of Moran Security Group
http://moran-group.org/en/about/index
[TABLE]
[TR]
[TD] [Image: bg-kalashnikov.png]

[/TD]
[TD]

Vyacheslav Kalashnikov
President of Group of Companies "Moran Security Group"

Experience

1981 1994: Served within the National Security Administration for Leningrad (St. Petersburg) Lieutenant Colonel of the Reserve
1995 2001: Provided leadership to numerous commercial organizations on security matters
2001 2003: Assistant to A. P. Torshin, Deputy President of the Council of the Federation
2004 2006: Deputy Director of a private security firm
2006 2009: Provided security services to the Transcreditbank branch office in St. Petersburg
2009 Present: Elected President of the Moran Security Group

Education

Dzerzhinksy October Revolution and Red Banner Orders' High KGB School under the Council of Ministers of the USSR
Additional Education and Courses

Specialized training in national security
Fluency in German

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD] [Image: bg-nikov.png]

[/TD]
[TD]

Igor Nikov
Representative on the Company's Fleet

Experience

Russian Navy military service (NS commander, Captain Commander)

Battle Experience

8 long voyages on ships and NS on different posts

State Awards

Awarded eight orders and medals for military service and battle service in the Armed Forces of Russian Federation

Education

Black Sea High Naval School after Nakhimov (Electrical Engineer and expert on naval armament)
Additional Education and Courses

Specialized training in maritime security
Expertise in underwater repair works

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD] [Image: bg-emelin.png]

[/TD]
[TD]

Sergey Emelin
Director of 1st Marine Department of Moran Security Group

Experience

Russian Navy military service (NS commander, Frigate Captain)
Deputy of the ME Rescue Service Chief (Murmansk)
Chief of the ME Rescue Unit (St. Petersburg)

Battle Experience

7 long voyages on ships and NS on different posts

State Awards

Awarded nine orders and medals for military service and battle service in the Armed Forces of Russian Federation

Education

High Naval Submarine School after Lenin's Young Communist League (Russian Navy Navigator, Electrical Engineer)
Additional Education and Courses

Rescuer, 2nd class;
Specialized courses in maritime security, earning the Company Security Officer diploma
Expertise in underwater repair works

[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

Slavonic Corps - Peter Lemkin - 17-11-2013

ABOUT US

Moran Security Group is an international group of companies offering premier security, transportation, medical, rescue, and consulting services.
We provide both comprehensive programs and focused interventions to serve the best interests of the client.
Our strategies are based on in-depth knowledge of complex international and local laws, as well as a keen awareness of the cultural practices and customs of the host country.
We maintain rigorous recruitment standards, certifying that our team members have acquired proper skills during military training and civil service.
We further ensure that our employees have achieved high-level professional competencies, with diverse backgrounds ranging from business and industry to security and the armed forces.
We offer targeted approaches in the world's current hot spots, such as the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa, which include the enlistment of local experts in these dynamic and highly sensitive environments.
We carefully analyze the goals of the client and assess potential risks, enabling us to minimize danger and promptly respond to any adversity the client may encounter in hazardous zones.
We employ top-drawer military and civil experts with specialized training and hands-on experience in critical countries throughout the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa.
We operate within the following legislative environment:

UN Security Council Resolution No. 1816;
UN Security Council Resolution No. 1838;
UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Article 105);
UN Charter (Article 51);
The Code of Conduct for International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement;
UN Mine Action Standard;
The laws and regulations of the host country.

We are dedicated to maintaining the highest legal, ethical and professional standards. We fully respect all human rights. All staff members are of good character: They are honest, trustworthy, responsible, and disciplined, acting strictly in accordance with their job descriptions. The team abides by our clear policy prohibiting any demand for extra compensation for their services from the client.
Certificates:

The Last Battle of the "Slavonic Corps"

The story of the Russian mercenaries who went to war against Syrian rebels.

ÐŸÐ¾ÑÐ»ÐµÐ´Ð½Ð¸Ð¹ Ð±Ð¾Ð¹ Â«Ð¡Ð»Ð°Ð²ÑÐ½ÑÐºÐ¾Ð³Ð¾ ÐºÐ¾Ñ€Ð¿ÑƒÑÐ°Â»

St. Petersburg Sends Contractors to Syria

Russians working for Hong Kong contractor discovered fighting Syrian rebels.

Vyacheslav Kalashnikov President of Group of Companies "Moran Security Group"

Experience

Education

Igor Nikov Representative on the Company's Fleet

Experience

Battle Experience

State Awards

Education

Sergey Emelin Director of 1st Marine Department of Moran Security Group

Experience

Battle Experience

State Awards

Education

ABOUT US

ÐŸÐ¾ÑÐ»ÐµÐ´Ð½Ð¸Ð¹ Ð±Ð¾Ð¹ Â«Ð¡Ð»Ð°Ð²ÑÐ½ÑÐºÐ¾Ð³Ð¾ ÐºÐ¾Ñ€Ð¿ÑƒÑÐ°Â»

Vyacheslav Kalashnikov
President of Group of Companies "Moran Security Group"

Igor Nikov
Representative on the Company's Fleet

Sergey Emelin
Director of 1st Marine Department of Moran Security Group