Is Russian influence in Bangui disguised as culture? – DV – 10/28/2024

Russia’s growing influence in Africa is evident in the Central African Republic (CAR), which strengthened its ties with the Kremlin thanks to a 2018 defense deal that gave the private Russian military group the Wagner Group a larger role in the country.

Russian military instructors supplied the army with weapons, trained soldiers in counter-insurgency and served as bodyguards for Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadera.

Behind the cultural curtain

One of the central players in the Russian presence is Dmitry Syty, a 35-year-old marketing expert and economist who heads the Russian House, a Russian cultural center in the Central African Republic’s capital Bangui.

Well-fed loves to talk about Russian language courses and evenings of Russian music and theater for local residents.

But observers say his influence is so great that they suspect he is one of the key figures in the Wagner group.

The Russian paramilitary organization is also suspected of involvement across Africa, including operations in Libya, Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

He is also accused of playing a major role in Russia’s war in Ukraine. Wagner’s previous leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, died in a plane crash in Russia in 2023, weeks after a group of mercenaries staged a mutiny against the Kremlin.

“We are continuing what he started,” said Syty, referring to Prigozhin.

Sytyy called Prigozhin’s death a great loss for Africa, in particular the Central African Republic, and noted that Africa is the continent of the future.

“The goal of our policy is to help the Central African Republic,” he said. “Everything revolves around this aid policy. This is not about defending our interests.”

Wagner’s strategic exit

From CAR’s perspective, Wagner has gained a foothold in the country at the right time, said Beverly Ochieng, a security analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

“There was a feeling that France, the dominant power in CAR and a former colonial power, and the UN were not doing enough because growing rebel violence threatened the elected government,” Ochieng told DW.

She added that this has allowed Moscow to dominate the security sector, as well as the mining sector, which cannot be controlled despite clear mining laws.

“What worries me about the Russians and their approach in CAR is that they want to operate with such impunity and seize mines by any means necessary,” said Philip Obagi, a Nigerian correspondent for The Daily Beast who has researched the mining industry. in the conflict region.

Obagi accuses both the Russians and the rebels of greed. They want to control the mines and are not negotiating, according to Obagi, who said this is why there has been no improvement in stability and peace in the CAR recently.

From bomb victim to influencer

Sity dismissed accusations of serious human rights violations against former Wagner mercenaries made by journalists, non-governmental organizations and Britain as Western propaganda.

He himself was the victim of a parcel bomb in late 2022 and as a result wears a prosthetic arm on his right arm.

“The journalists who claim in their articles that I was behind the terrorist attack agree with this terrorist attack,” he said.

Sytyy is on the US and EU sanctions lists due to allegations of human rights violations. He is also one of the shareholders of Lobaye Invest, which is located on international sanctions lists.

The company is engaged in the exploration of new deposits of raw materials and participates in financing Wagner’s activities.

Syty told DW that he is first and foremost an “ambassador of Russian culture.” However, he admits that from time to time he carried out other “disarmament missions” on behalf of President Touadera with armed groups in Central Africa.

Political influence instead of cultural work

According to Ochieng, Sity runs the cultural center, but he also has the ability to exert significant political influence on government negotiations and their terms. “Sytiy is active in the security apparatus, he is the head of Russian military intelligence and the head of all those involved in training auxiliary troops in Berengo,” the security expert said, referring to a planned Russian military base in the southern town of Berengo equipped to meet the needs 10,000 soldiers.

“Officially they are Russian trainers, but in reality they are Wagner members who own companies,” former Central African Republic lawmaker Jean-Pierre Marat said in a 2023 DW French-language podcast. QuiQuoiComment?

The planned Berengo base, which already has an airport and other facilities needed to operate a military base, is another piece of the puzzle through which Russia is apparently trying to expand its influence throughout Africa. “The Central African Republic is a kind of pilot project for Russia’s new policy in Africa,” Syty told DW.

Many other countries are closely watching developments in relations with the Central African Republic, as it could signal Russia’s future influence in Africa.

This article was originally published in German.

Zygoto Chaya Chameny, Sandrine Blanchard and Eddie Mika Jr. contributed reporting.