Russia boasts that its troops are present in six African countries. What are they doing there?
Ostentatious signs of Russian presence in Mali. Photo: Nicolas Remene/ Zuma Press/ Profimedia
So far very discreet about its military participation on the African continent, the Russian army is present in six countries in Africa, reported Russian public television channels, as reported by the France Presse and Agerpres agencies on Monday.
Isolated from the West since its offensive against Ukraine, Moscow is establishing new partnerships in Africa, where its political, economic and military influence has strengthened in recent years.
“Officers and soldiers of the Russian armed forces are already operating in six African countries,” said a correspondent of the public television station Rossia 1 in a report broadcast on Sunday.
He did not specify the countries involved, apart from Mali, where the report was filmed.
Another report published by the French-language RT station, RT France, mentions “several African countries, including Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Equatorial Guinea.”
Produced in Moscow, the French-language RT was launched after the European Union banned RT, formerly Russia Today, and focuses on African francophone audiences, according to its website.
Asked by RT about the nature of his mission, a Russian soldier replied: “The soldiers of the Ministry of Defense, and especially those of the Africa Corps, always and everywhere defend the interests of Russia.”
Information was already circulating about the presence of Russian troops or military instructors in Burkina Faso, Niger, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic and Libya.
Wagner mercenaries, replaced by regular troops
The Africa Corps military unit, part of the Ministry of Defence, has taken control from the Wagner Group's paramilitary troops on the African continent, diplomatic sources in the Sahel told AFP in June.
The Wagner group, present in Africa and Ukraine, went through a complex dissolution process after the death of its founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, in a plane crash in August 2023, following a failed rebellion against Moscow.
In footage broadcast on Russian state television, a masked soldier stands next to a flag that closely resembles the flag of the Wagner Group.
According to the report, the deployed soldiers are all “veterans of the special military operation”, the name used by Moscow for its offensive in Ukraine.
Other images show two Russian bombers launching an attack and heavy military equipment, including helicopters and armored personnel carriers.
According to Moscow, these forces, which belong to the Russian Ministry of Defense, help several African governments in the fight against jihadist movements.
