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

MOSCOW (AP) — Mercenaries from Russia’s military company Wagner have launched joint drills with the Belarusian military almost a month after their short-lived rebellion. The Belarusian Defense Ministry said the week-long maneuvers that started on Thursday will be conducted at a firing range near a city on the country’s border with Poland. In response to the war games, Poland’s defense minister ordered a troop buildup on its side of the border. A video released Wednesday appeared to show Wagner’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin for the first time since he led last month’s rebellion. The recording shows Prigozhin telling his troops they would spend some time in Belarus training its military before deploying to Africa.