Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has provided clarity on the activity of the Wagner mercenary group in African countries, stating that the future of the contracts signed between various African countries and the group is a matter for those governments. Lavrov also revealed that Russia’s defence ministry had around “several hundred” military advisers working in the Central African Republic (CAR). The presence of Wagner mercenaries and the role of the Russian state in their activities has been the subject of much speculation, particularly in light of the group’s brief mutiny in Rostov-on-Don last Saturday.

On Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin announced that Wagner was “fully financed” by the state, a figure of around 86 billion rubles ($940 million) being paid to the group between May 2022 – May 2023. Mali has been battling armed groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda for a number of years and has rejected claims that Russian troops in the country are Wagner mercenaries. The Malian government has stated that the Russians are merely trainers, helping local troops with equipment purchased from Russia.

However, the group has been accused of human rights abuses, most notably in March 2022 in Moura, where local troops and suspected Russian fighters allegedly killed hundreds of civilians. The situation in Mali has led to thousands of citizens fleeing to the M’bera refugee camp in neighbouring Mauritania since 2021. The United Nations has recorded almost 7,000 new arrivals between March – April 2022 alone.

Lavrov’s comments have provided definitive clarity on the status of Wagner operatives in CAR and other African countries, along with the scale of the Russian state’s involvement in the group’s activities on the continent. Despite this, the activity of Wagner mercenaries and their links to the Russian state remain a cause for concern, with the potential for further human rights abuses in the future remaining a real possibility.