Images captured by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel 2 satellites on Tuesday appear to show what may be a new Wagner military base near the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
The images, if confirmed, would suggest a rapid build-up for Wagner in the days after the Russian mercenary company, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, engaged in a short-lived mutiny.
Russian media has reported that Wagner troops arrived in Belarus on Tuesday and could set up a new base at a vacant military facility near the town of Asipovichi, some 50 miles from Minsk.
The recent satellite image shows rows of long structures in the nearby village of Tsel, in a field that was empty as recently as June 24 – well over a week before Wagner’s short-lived mutiny.
The images are publicly available through searches on the ESA website.
The Defense Department told Fox News Digital it is monitoring the situation but declined to “get into intelligence matters regarding Wagner's disposition.”
PENTAGON ADDRESSES RUMORS OF RUSSIAN MILITARY PURGE FOLLOWING SHORT-LIVED WAGNER MUTINY
In a statement to Fox News Digital, former U.S. defense intelligence officer Rebekah Koffler said Russian President Vladimir Putin aims to open a second front in Belarus as he builds a combat-ready strategic reserve of his most capable force of Wagner “musicians.”