After the crash of Prigozhin's plane, many believed that the "Wagner" mercenary group no longer existed. However, on the battlefield of Avadiivka, the Wagner veteran reappeared and made a major breakthrough on the battlefield. According to Western estimates, the Wagner Group recruited more than 78,000 fighters in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict, but in the war, more than 22,000 were killed, more than 40,000 were wounded, and only 16,000 left the battlefield intact. Although some have questioned whether the 33,000 veterans have re-signed their employment contracts with the Ministry of Defense, their return has changed the battlefield situation in any case.
At the beginning of their return, Wagner veterans were sent to serve as combat instructors for grassroots officers and soldiers and newly trained units, imparting combat experience to them and helping them adapt to new combat methods. However, as the situation of the war developed, the Russian army had to redeploy veterans, add them to different ground assault forces, and act as the vanguard of the ground offensive in the battle, and guide the regular units of the Russian army to organize offensive operations. However, at first, their cooperation with the Russian regular troops was not very tacit and could not achieve the previous advance effect. Due to the fact that the offensive and defensive battle in Avadiivka was not going well, the Russian army once again adjusted the grouping strategy of the Wagner assault detachment, regrouped them, and formed an elite force of a certain size.
After this adjustment, Wagner veterans have made amazing progress. On 26 November, the railway station of Yasinovataya No. 2 was captured, as well as the entire industrial area in the vicinity. After almost a month of fighting, the Ukrainian defense units have been dealt an almost devastating blow. According to reports, there are only more than 3,000 Ukrainian troops left in the city of Avadiivka. According to the German newspaper **, the Ukrainian army has lost at least 17,000 people in Avadiivka, at least half of which were annihilated after Wagner's entry into the war.
Wagner was able to achieve such a record, in addition to their rich combat experience, the Russian army also cut off the logistics supply line of the Ukrainian army in a timely manner, so that the Ukrainian army could not block the offensive of Wagner veterans. In addition, the Wagner veterans adopted the tactics of rapid interspersed assault and long-range sniping, causing huge casualties to the Ukrainian defense units. The rapid development of the war situation has brought great pressure to the Ukrainian army.
Overall, the re-entry of Wagner veterans into the fight turned the tide of battle, and they made amazing progress. At the same time, the losses of the Ukrainian defense units are obvious. The return of Wagner veterans has injected new fighting power into the Russian army, but it has also sparked greater concern and controversy. The Russian side has refused to publicly acknowledge the existence of the Wagner commandos, or even to deny the involvement of Wagner veterans in the fighting. However, the West** and observers have different views on this and continue to monitor the progress of the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. In addition, the entry of Wagner veterans into the war has also sparked debate within the country, with some questioning whether Russia** sees the use of private military contractors as a legitimate means.
In any case, the Ukrainian-Russian conflict has entered a new critical phase. The return of Wagner veterans has brought greater challenges to Ukraine and put forward higher requirements for the strategic and tactical deployment of the Ukrainian army. How to deal with the threat of Wagner veterans has become an urgent problem for the Ukrainian army to solve. At the same time, the international community has also maintained a high degree of concern about the development of the situation in Ukraine, and called on all parties to exercise restraint and resolve the dispute through peaceful means as soon as possible.