The Wagner group keeps a low profile in Sudan to protect its interests

First modification: 04/21/2023 – 03:26

Less visible than in Mali or the Central African Republic, the Wagner group has nevertheless been well established in Sudan for several years. As open warfare rages between General Al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the leader of the feared Rapid Support Forces (RSF), many are wondering what role the Russian private militia might be playing in the Sudanese chaos.

The story of Wagner’s discreet presence in Sudan dates back to November 2017. Increasingly challenged, the autocrat Omar al-Bashir — whose country was weakened by a strict economic embargo — then traveled to Sochi, Russia, to meet with Vladimir Putin. In exchange for Russian support, Al-Bashir offered privileged access to its gold mines and proposed making Sudan the bridge to the Kremlin’s ambitions on the mainland.

In the weeks following this summit, Meroe Gold, a mining company owned by the Russian company M Invest, linked to Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner group, began prospecting in the world’s third largest gold producer. A resource of which a large part is illegally exploited by the RSF and the Daglo clan.

“In Sudan, Wagner’s men are closely controlled by ‘Hemetti’, who uses them as security guards in his illegal gold mines,” historian Gérard Prunier, a specialist in East Africa, told France 24 in 2022.

“Wagner kept a low profile in Sudan because the country’s dependence on security aid was less than in Mali or the Central African Republic,” says Roland Marchal, a researcher at the Center de Recherches Internationales de Sciences Po (CERI).

Moscow thus plunders gigantic volumes of gold worth several billion dollars and contributes to inflating its reserves of the golden metal. Last July, an investigation by ‘CNN’ revealed the existence of 16 clandestine flights from Khartoum and Port Sudan to Latakia in Syria, where Russia has a major air base.

According to data from the World Gold Council, Russian reserves have gone from 450 tons of gold in 2007 to 2,301 tons of gold at the end of 2022a hoarding aimed at sustaining the Russian economy in the face of Western sanctions and financing the war in Ukraine.

Proximity to Moscow

But the partnership between Sudan and Wagner is far from limited to mining. In exchange for access to the country’s resources, the group offers the RSF military training, as well as experience in online disinformation campaigns.

According to ‘The New York Times’Two days after the June 2019 army-RSF massacre in Khartoum — which left 128 pro-democracy protesters dead — Meroe Gold imported 13 tons of riot shields, as well as helmets and batons. This shipment was destined for a company controlled by the ‘Hemetti’ clan, which was about to change course after having played a central role in the Islamist dictatorship of Al-Bashir.

In 2022, an investigation of the ‘Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project’ (OCCRP), a group of investigative journalists, also revealed close links between Wagner and the Sudanese security apparatus. According to the text, Wagner paid several hundred thousand dollars to a company controlled by the intelligence and security services, the umbrella body of the RSF, in exchange for access to the country’s air bases.

The proximity of ‘Hemetti’ to Moscow becomes even more evident after the military coup that ousted civilians from power. On February 23, 2022, on the eve of Putin’s launch of the “special operation” in Ukraine, a Sudanese delegation led by General Daglo was received in Moscow.

For eight days, the RSF chief met with numerous Russian officials, including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. On this occasion, an old project for a Russian naval base in the Red Sea was revived.

“However, it must be remembered that this delegation was also made up of personalities close to Burhan,” moderates Marchal. “This proximity exists, but it must not be forgotten that the Russians have no interest in settling down with ‘Hemetti’.”

Choose the winning side

At the moment, there is nothing to indicate that the Russian militias will play a role in the ongoing clashes with the regular Army.

“Today, not a single Wagner fighter is in Sudan. And it has been like that for two years,” Prigozhin told Telegram on Tuesday.

According to jeune africa, Relying on a source close to the French intelligence services, Prigozhin and Hemetti maintain regular contact. The latter would even try to obtain material support from the Russian paramilitary group to gain an advantage over his rival.

Behind the violence in Sudan, an “existential” conflict between two military leaders

But according to several experts, Wagner should keep his distance to preserve his interests in Sudan. “Wagner should adopt an opportunistic attitude in the current conflict,” Catrina Doxee, of the think tank American CSIS.

“Relations with ‘Hemetti’ are very cordial, there is no doubt about that. But from the Russian point of view, seeing how the competition between the two is hardening, it is clear that you do not have to choose sides, because there is too much to lose by playing the wrong card,” argues Marchal. “In the end, they will choose the winning side.”

This article was adapted from its original in French.