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March 7 (UPI) -- Russia has been recruiting Syrian mercenaries to fight in Ukraine, the Pentagon said Monday, as the Kremlin seeks to reinforce its invasion that has stalled against Kyiv's resistance. Since Russia's invasion began nearly two weeks ago, there has been a spattering of reports that Russia has been attempting to bolster its forces in Ukraine by attracting Syrians to its ranks with salaries of between $200 and $300 a month.
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An unnamed senior defense official speaking told reporters that the Pentagon can corroborate that Russia has been trying to recruit Syrians to fight its war in the Eastern European country.
"We find that noteworthy, that [Russian President Vladimir Putin] believes that he needs to rely on foreign fighters to supplement what is a very significant commitment of combat power inside Ukraine as it is," the official said.
The Pentagon appears to have little information about these fighters, with the official stating they do not know if any have arrived in Ukraine, how many have been recruited, how good they are or if Russia has set a quota for the number of foreign fighters it is hoping to attract.
Ahead of the invasion, Russia had amassed some 150,000 troops to encircle Ukraine along with its border and in neighboring Belarus in preparation for the invasion.
Since then, nearly its entire combat force has entered Ukraine, the official said, with John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesperson, stating in a separate press conference that much of its forces are still assembled, so he can't "speculate" on why Putin would need to seek additional support.
"I cannot get inside Mr. Putin's brain as to why he would find it necessary to seek support from foreign fighters," he said.
The Pentagon's corroboration though comes as the Russian forces' advance on Ukraine appears to have stalled.
Kirby said the Russians continue to be frustrated and have been slowed by the Ukrainian resistance.
"They really haven't made any noteworthy progress in the last few days," he said.
The exception has been down in southern Ukraine where the Kremlin has made some progress, he said, but up north and near the all-important capital of Kyiv, ground troops have not been able to make any meaningful advances.
"What we assess is as they continue to get frustrated, they continue to rely now more on what we would call long-range fires," he said.
These long-range missiles attacks have become the majority of the strikes Russia has been conducting as of late when during the start of the invasion the majority were of the short-range variety, the senior official said.
Kirby explained this means the Russian forces are relying upon missile strikes and long-range artillery to target city centers, and the Pentagon assess it is doing so at the cost of Ukrainian lives and infrastructure because their ground forces fail to make advances into those locations.
"They are having supply problems. They are having fuel problems. They're having food problems. They are meeting a very stiff and determined Ukrainian resistance," he said. "And we still maintain that they are several days behind what they probably thought they were going to be in terms of their progress."
The Pentagon on Monday also said Defense Secretary announced the deployment of 500 additional troops to Poland, Romania and Germany.
Since the war began on Feb. 24, at least 406 Ukrainian civilians have been killed and another 801 injured.
Britain's Ministry of Defense said Monday evening that several civilians were killed throughout the day as they were trying to evacuate Irpin near Kyiv.
