2024-04-30 14:26:53
Seven months after the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the “Wagner” paramilitary group that rebelled against Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow is seeking to extend its control over the group’s former mercenaries and employ them to serve the interests of the Kremlin, according to the newspaper “Politico.”
The Russian authorities divided thousands of Wagner members into at least four groups, with the aim of preventing a repeat of the events of last year when the group rebelled against Moscow, according to what the newspaper reported from American officials who refused to reveal their identities to discuss sensitive intelligence issues.
One American official confirmed, “Part of the goal of the restructuring is to ensure that there is more control over operations in general.”
Other officials said the new special forces are already deployed around the world on special missions, including in Ukraine and Africa where they are expected to play a destabilizing role on the world stage similar to what they were under Prigozhin.
According to Politico, the reconstituted paramilitary groups have already forced the administration of US President Joe Biden to withdraw US forces from Niger and Chad in a major setback to anti-terrorism efforts, while the groups continue to challenge Washington’s policies in other African countries.
Among the new groups formed on the ruins of Wagner are forces allied with the Russian National Guard, which have already been transferred to Ukraine and have lost a large number of their fighters, according to the same source.
These are in addition to two other groups operating under the control of the Ministry of Defense and intelligence services in Moscow, and a fourth group – known as the “Africa Corps” that is allied with another existing group, known as “REDOT”, and seeks to take control of the former Wagner forces in some African capitals, according to Officials mentioned it.
Not much is known about the composition of these new factions and the number of their members coming from Wagner versus other organizations, or the role of Prigozhin’s son in leading the group of elements loyal to his father.
Officials suggested that Prigozhin Jr. was likely responsible for some forces in the Central African Republic and Mali.
Prigozhin died last August after his plane crashed under mysterious circumstances. In an incident that was widely considered a state-sponsored assassination, ordered by Putin, after he led a failed rebellion against the military leadership in Moscow, after he accused the army leaders of incompetence in the war in Ukraine.
Prigozhin’s death left the fate of his “empire” in a state of uncertainty, as Wagner was establishing relations with the leaders of rogue African states and providing them with security in exchange for lucrative economic gains. It also ran extensive disinformation campaigns that included organizing protests and spreading fake news to destabilize African and Western countries.
Moscow’s newly announced control over these private mercenaries has wide-ranging effects on geopolitics, according to the newspaper, which noted that in Africa in particular, it could undermine the Biden administration’s efforts to combat terrorism, promote democracy, and establish diplomatic relations with the newly formed regimes.
One American official said, “The timing element here is essential.” “Russia can offer these countries what the United States cannot immediately,” he said, referring to Moscow’s ability to use private fighters to provide secret weapons and munitions to newly formed military governments in Africa.
He added: “Many of the leaders of those countries are tired of the United States lecturing them about democracy.”
Under the law, the United States cannot provide assistance to governments that seize power after military coups, which puts it one step behind Russia, in similar cases that have been repeated in African countries.
Moscow’s direct control over paramilitary groups could also push some African countries that had previously distanced themselves from Wagner, which was subject to global sanctions as a criminal organization, to reconsider their previous position, the officials said.
Moscow’s use of paramilitary fighters to spread its influence in Africa is already clearly visible in Niger, one of the most important hotbeds of the war against terrorism, where military leaders seized power after their coup against the elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, last July.
Earlier this month, hundreds of Russian mercenaries arrived in the capital, Niamey, claiming they were there to help train the Nigerien army and enter into a formal partnership with the ruling junta.
Their arrival came just days before the Biden administration announced that the United States would withdraw a thousand soldiers from the country after about 10 years, and this appeared as if Russian forces were replacing the American ones.
In Burkina Faso, former Wagner forces are now under the control of the Africa Corps.
Former Wagner fighters also remain active in Mali, Libya and Sudan, where they have contracts to provide security for unstable regimes there.
Speaking to Politico, two American officials warned of the dangers facing Russia’s strategy, especially with regard to ongoing questions about the loyalty of former Wagner fighters and their willingness to take orders from the Ministry of Defense, which is often criticized in the country.
According to the same source, many Wagner fighters remain loyal to the memory of Prigozhin and they continue to hate the Minister of Defense, who now leads some of them in a highly selective group known as “My Homeland,” supervised and funded by the Ministry of Defense.
A third American official said, “It is unclear whether Moscow will be able to achieve what Wagner has done for years,” explaining that “placing these fighters in an existing bureaucratic system may slow things down and make them less dangerous.”
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2024-04-30 14:26:53