Russia’s Growing Influence in the Central African Republic: a New Ally or a New Coloniser?

Cover Image Source: MINUSCA overseeing voting in Bangui https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MINUSCA_in_PK5,_Bangui,_December_2015.jpg

The Central African Republic (CAR) has been embroiled in conflict between various rebel factions since 2012, and despite the United Nations Peacekeeping mission MINUSCA, the country remains fragmented with self-proclaimed leaders controlling swaths of territory throughout the country. The country is one of the poorest in the world with 62% of the population living in poverty, yet underlying the widespread poverty there is a plethora of natural resources. The country has large reserves of gold, diamonds, timber, and cotton, all of which could be sold on the international market; instead years of civil war have left the state excluded from international markets. Faustin-Archange Touadera, elected president in 2016, immediately sought military assistance from the UN in order to defeat the warlords who have been terrorising civilians as well as selling CAR gold and diamonds on the black market. France proposed a deal using seized Somali weapons, but that was rejected by the UN Security Council because of an arms embargo on Somali weapons. Russia quickly offered the CAR its services.

In December 2016, Russia sent an initial shipment of AK47s, machine guns, grenade launchers, and sniper rifles to President Touadera’s government. The following February, nine combat-ready planes, 200 military personal, mercenaries, and intelligence specialists arrived from Moscow. In 2018, Valeriy Zakharov, a former official in the Russian intelligence service, became President Touadera’s chief security adviser. Today, a group of Russian advisers works out of the CAR’s defence ministry. The Russians associated with Putin’s Moscow have been welcomed in the CAR, a reception rarely felt in Western Europe or the United States.

 Russian businessmen are also looking to establish their presence in the CAR to cash in on its valuable natural resources. One of them is Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhan, a known confidant of Putin, who was indicted for interference in the United States’ 2016 presidential election. In the Central African Republic, a mining company (Lobaye Invest) and a security firm (Sewa Security Services) were registered to Mr. Prigozhin just twelve days apart. Sewa Security is one of the many Russian-backed paramilitary/mercenary groups operating in the CAR. Sewa was created to protect Mr. Prigozhin’s business dealings in the lucrative diamond trade. Meanwhile other PMCs are tasked with various security operations for on behalf of the government, but all operate with impunity; most notably when three Russian investigative journalists were killed by Wagner Group operatives.

When the Central African Republic appealed for international help in restoring order to the country, its deal with Russia brought about a new wave of ‘Francafrique’ foreign policy according to Roland Marchal, an expert on Russia-Africa relations at Paris’ Sciences Po. While France is not carrying out the policy initiatives, Russia is using France’s playbook by offering military security in return for economic gain. Clearly the Russians expect to receive preferential treatment in the CAR, access to the country’s vast resource wealth, and an untapped audience to consume pro-Russian news and propaganda. This is just one example of Russia’s renewed expansion into the continent. Others include arms sales to Sudan and Egypt and mining projects in Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Guinea, Mozambique, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. When states cannot receive help from Western powers, Russia has been quick to step in—especially if Putin’s oligarchs stand to make a handsome profit.

By United States Central Intelligence Agency - CIA World Factbookhttps://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ct.htmlImage: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/graphics/maps/large/ct-map.gif, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89379

Security for economic preference and access to local media have proved a winning formula in the CAR as Russia’s involvement has steadily increased. Most recently Russia provided transport for various militia leaders to Sochi, the Black Sea resort, so that they could be present for peace talks with President Touadera’s government. By promoting itself as a regional partner, Russia is occupying a space that the United States has vacated and has not yet been capitalised upon by China. It also comes at a time when Putin is actively trying to re-establish Russia as a true superpower. 

Despite successfully lobbying for economic preference, Russian companies have had difficulty selling the CAR’s natural resources, namely gold and diamonds, on the international market. In 2013, the Kimberley Group labelled a majority of CAR’s diamonds as ‘blood diamonds,’ thus neither the government nor companies could sell the valuable diamonds on the international market. Starting in 2016, some areas can now legally sell their diamonds abroad, however, the black market for diamonds is flourishing, plaguing the highest levels of government: in 2018 President Touadera dismissed his top adviser for selling suspected blood diamonds. Because the CAR has traded mining rights for Russian-backed security services, individuals such as Mr. Prigozhin stand to reap the rewards of the country’s vast natural resources. The blood diamonds now can reach international markets by passing through local black markets where Russian firms then resell them as legitimately sourced diamonds. However, unless relative peace and stability return to the Central African Republic, neither the government nor Russian interest groups will be able to fully profit off the valuable resources within the state.

Whilst the outcome in the Central African Republic is unclear, the Russians have made one thing explicit: manoeuvrability and large gains are to be made in Africa. By providing security in exchange for profit, Russia has developed a blueprint for moving forward. By operating in foreign countries, Russian-backed PMCs can carry out missions on behalf of the Russian state with impunity, all under the guise of being employed by the host state’s government. While mercenaries enforce and maintain security, Russian oligarchs are free to take advantage of economic opportunities. Now President Touadera must decide if peace is more valuable than state sovereignty and international influence.