Ukraine's counteroffensive is facing off against Wagner's successor group, Storm Z, on the outskirts of Bakhmut
- Ukraine's counteroffensive is running into Wagner's successor group, Storm Z, in Bakhmut.
- The group is mostly conscripts, reservists, and convicts, The Washington Post said.
Ukraine is two months into its long-awaited counteroffensive, slowly pressing the front lines and grinding against Russia's defenses. And on the outskirts of a ruined town, the site of one of the bloodiest battles of the war, Ukrainian forces are battling a Russian group called "Storm Z," according to a new report.
As the Ukrainians fight on the outskirts of Bakhmut, positioning to retake key territory, they are running into Storm Z forces, Russian troops sent to replace the Wagner Group after its fighters came off the line, The Washington Post reported.
Storm Z, however, doesn't consist of mercenaries like Wagner, which defined itself with a culture of extreme violence. The group, instead, is a mix of regular reservists and conscripts, the Post said. Some of the troops in this force are convicted criminals, though, which is reminiscent of Wagner's push earlier this year to enlist Russian prisoners as combatants in exchange for time off of their sentences. Many of those prisoners were massacred fighting in Bakhmut.
Ukraine has said that Storm Z shows extremely low combat capability, according to a press release translated by Pravada. The soldiers in this group suffer from alcoholism, engage in looting, and are prone to desertion, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said, and Russian leadership has made efforts to regroup Storm Z with other soldiers.
Wagner troops declared victory in Bakhmut — a once-bustling city now a ghost town left in ruins — in May. The capture of the city was Russia's only major territorial gain this year, and it came at tremendous costs for both sides, but particularly for the troops fighting on behalf of Russia.
In late June, some Storm Z fighters announced their support for Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin's armed mutiny against Russian military leadership, a move which ended in failure but may have a lasting impact on Russia.