Russian lawmakers are reportedly drafting legislation to legalize and regulate private military companies

Source: Meduza

Within the next month, Russian lawmakers in the State Duma are reportedly planning to introduce draft legislation that would legalize private military companies. The law would also restrict PMCs from violating nations’ sovereignty, changing states’ borders, overthrowing legitimate authorities, carrying out sabotage, and developing, buying, or storing weapons of mass destruction.

On January 15, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed the need for regulations on Russian PMCs. In 2012 and 2014, lawmakers previously tried to introduce legislation on PMCs, but the laws were rejected as anti-constitutional, given that private military companies in Russia are currently classified as “mercenary groups,” which are banned by the Constitution.

Russian PMCs are reportedly active in Syria, where more than 130 Russian mercenaries died in combat in the first nine months of 2017, according to a report by Reuters. There have also been several reports of Russian PMC combatants being captured in Syria.

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Russian lawmakers are reportedly drafting legislation to legalize and regulate private military companies

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