The Africa Corps, the Russian African Forces, still known by the old and established name Wagner Group, have been involved in the killing and deportation of civilians in the Central African Republic. The Russian paramilitary company currently operates one of the country’s largest gold mines, profits from which can flow into the Russian war chest. The infamous mercenary army, transferred in 2023 under the Russian Ministry of Defense, has been operating in the Central African Republic since 2018. In exchange for military assistance to the president Faustin-Archange Touadéra in the country’s civil war, to companies linked to the Wagner Group several valuable mineral rights were granted. The most significant of these is the gold mine of Ndassima which is estimated to be capable of producing up to 62 tonnes of gold per year. The Africa Corps profited from gold mining in the Central African Republic and Sudan. Additionally, Russian mining companies export diamonds from Angola and Zimbabwe, as well as bauxite from Guinea. The Wagner Group has already been accused of murders, mass deportations and rapes Ndassima and in other mining communities. According to SVT, the Wagner Group’s crimes have continued in recent years. A woman who lived in the area claims that the Russians arrived in her home village in September 2023 and announced that «the area now belongs to the Russians and the president Touadéra». When the villagers refused to abandon their homes, the Russian soldiers opened fire. Satellite images reveal that two villages in the area disappeared in the space of a few weeks, in the autumn of 2023. «My husband was murdered in cold blood in front of our children. They are still traumatized. I told the city authorities about how we were kicked out of Ndassimabut no one did anything to help us,” said a woman who survived the attacks.
Other sources interviewed by SVT also describe that the Russians deported, tortured and killed residents of the area. The story is also confirmed by a Central African soldier who fought alongside the Russians: «What we did with Wagner is terrible. We arrest people and then kill them, we lock them up until they die. We kill people and throw them into the river. My duty is to tell the truth. I will kill my countrymen, because if I refuse, the Russians will kill me.” According to reports from the US Ministry of Defense, the Group Wagner in a few years it was able to insert itself as a political actor in fourteen countries, also taking advantage of the American disengagement during the administration of the former president Donald Trumpas well as growing negative feelings towards France which had strong influences and interests in some African countries. The list of states that have relations with Wagner includes Libya, Eritrea, Sudan, South Sudan, Algeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Niger, Madagascar, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Since 2015, Russia has signed military cooperation agreements with 43 African nations, as reported by the European Parliament.
Between 2018 and 2022, Moscow established itself as the main arms supplier to the African continent, covering 40% of its imports. Russia is committed to supporting Burkina Faso and Mali in the development of their nuclear sectors, while also providing opportunities to welcome more African students. This comes in a context in which Europe takes measures to limit the arrival of migrants. France, which ended its colonial rule in West Africa in the 1960s, has withdrawn its troops from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, following recent military coups and growing anti-French sentiment in those countries. Into this void Russia has deployed the group’s mercenaries Africa Corps across the Sahel, with the aim of supporting local governments in the fight against jihadist insurgents. However, the operation did not achieve the desired results: the factions affiliated with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State continue to strike on a daily basis. In Mali and Burkina Faso, jihadist groups now control large areas of the territory. The northern areas of Côte d’Ivoire, especially those bordering Burkina Faso and Mali, are particularly vulnerable. In these areas, attacks against security forces and the civilian population have occurred. The Ivorian authorities have intensified security measures to counter these threats, achieving some successes, however, local groups linked to al-Qaeda and to Islamic State at war with each other they strike every day.
