Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin appeared unexpectedly at the Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg, where a host of African leaders were meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Mr Prigozhin, 62, was the man who led a brief armed mutiny in Russia a month ago targeting the country's military leadership, and later fled to Belarus under a deal brokered by neighboring President Alexander Lukashenko.
Prigozhin’s associate Dmitry Syty, who heads the Russia House cultural center in the Central African Republic (CAR), posted a photo of Wagner with CAR representatives on Telegram on July 27. Syty said the photo was taken on the sidelines of a conference taking place in Russia’s former capital city.
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is seen at the Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg, July 27, 2023. Photo: Telegram Север.Реалии
Fontanka further details that the photo was taken at the Trezine Hotel, which is owned by the Prigozhin family. The whereabouts of tycoon Prigozhin have been a mystery since the failed coup, but it seems that the former “Putin chef” is still traveling back and forth between Russia and Belarus.
Mr Prigozhin was recently reported to be in Belarus, where many Wagner soldiers are currently residing in field camps and helping train units of the Belarusian army – raising concerns in the West that they could attack Ukraine from the north, or even Poland from the west.
If Mr. Prigozhin is indeed in St. Petersburg, then the Wagner leader's presence at the Summit of African Leaders in Russia and his meeting with a CAR delegate must surely have some significance, given the Wagner group's extensive reach in many African countries including CAR, Libya, Mali, Sudan, Mozambique and Burkina Faso.
Wagner is also believed to be active in Niger, where a coup was carried out on July 26 to overthrow the country's president.
The Wagner private military group has different goals in each region, but its operations have largely had one thing in common: It always involves bolstering the military forces of Kremlin-friendly regimes by providing weapons and training, while also providing additional security services.
In return, Russia gets access to natural resources, investment opportunities and geopolitical influence.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the plenary session of the Russia-Africa Summit, in St. Petersburg, Russia, July 27, 2023. Photo: TASS
Speaking at the opening of the Russia-Africa Summit on July 27, President Putin offered to provide free grain to six poor African countries. The offer came days after Russia pulled out of a grain export deal with Ukraine via the Black Sea, brokered by the United Nations (UN) and Türkiye.
“In the coming months, we will be able to ensure free supplies of 25,000-50,000 tons of grain to Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, the Central African Republic and Eritrea,” Putin said.
In its more than one year of operation, the Black Sea Grain Initiative has allowed some 33 million tons of grain to leave Ukrainian ports, helping to stabilize global food prices and prevent shortages.
Russia withdrew from the agreement, arguing that none of the provisions related to Russia had been implemented during the period, while Ukraine's food exports were still guaranteed. Moreover, grain from Ukraine was not exported to the poorest countries, but mainly to the West.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has pressed African leaders attending the summit to demand answers about grain disruptions that have pushed poorer nations into crisis.
“They know exactly who is responsible for the current situation,” the US diplomat said on July 27 during a visit to New Zealand, referring to leaders on the “dark continent.” “My expectation is that Russia will hear this clearly from its African partners.”
The two-day summit in Putin's hometown of Saint Petersburg is being watched by the West as a test of the Russian leader's support in Africa despite the international isolation Moscow has suffered since its military intervention in Ukraine last February .
Minh Duc (According to Daily Mail, RFE/RL)
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