The Kremlin confirmed on Dec. 11 that longtime Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad had fled to Moscow after rebels took the capital city of Damascus in a lightning offensive that shocked the world. Assad’s exile in Russia comes as little surprise. The Kremlin had invested heavily in propping up the
The U.K. government on Nov. 7 announced its largest package of sanctions against Russia since May 2023, focusing on the Russian defense industry and mercenary groups.
The visit to Johannesburg and Pretoria will conclude Andrii Sybiha's tour across the Middle East and the African continent as he seeks to strengthen ties and drum up support for Ukraine's peace formula.
Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) claimed to have shot down a cargo plane in Darfur, with speculation that Russian nationals may have been on board.
The statement comes after an article by the French outlet Le Monde claimed that Tuareg fighters from the anti-government CSP movement are using Ukrainian drones against the military and Wagner mercenaries.
The surviving members of a group of 14 men from Ghana who were lured into the Russian military to fight against Ukraine have appealed for help from Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast, Ghanaian news outlet TV3 reported on Sept. 19.
In this exclusive interview, the Kyiv Independent interviews Somali and Sierra Leonean prisoners of war who fought for Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Reuters identified 23 missing Wagner soldiers and two others who were captured by Tuareg fighters. Some of them took part in the occupation of the town of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast. Others served in Libya and Syria.
A Russian private military company with links to Russia's Defense Ministry is withdrawing from Burkina Faso due to Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast, French newspaper Le Monde reported on Aug. 29.
Wagner mercenaries are operating only in Belarus and Africa, and are not fighting alongside the Russian army in Ukraine, the Wagner Group claimed in a statement on Telegram on Aug. 26.
Warsaw ordered 50,000 155-millimeter shells from the South African company Denel Munition, a subsidiary of the German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, in which it holds a 51% stake.
Niger and Mali's decisions to cut diplomatic ties earlier in August "were not made by these countries alone," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi told a Kyiv Independent journalist at a press briefing on Aug. 13.
The United Arab Emirates introduced a ban on ships bearing the flag of the African nation of Eswatini, signaling further restrictions on "shadow fleet" vessels carrying Russian oil, Bloomberg reported on Aug. 8.
The West African nation of Niger cut ties with Ukraine on Aug. 6, two days after neighboring Mali made a similar announcement.
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba signed a memorandum on political consultations with his Zambian counterpart, Mulambo Haimbe, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said on Aug. 6.
The protests in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, came amid growing Western concern over Russia's security ties to the region, including states such as Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, where military leaders have seized power in coups de grace.
The West African nation of Niger is severing diplomatic relations with Ukraine, two days after neighboring Mali made a similar announcement following reports of rebel clashes with Wagner mercenaries.
Mali's decision to sever diplomatic relations with Ukraine is "regrettable," as Mali's transitional government has not provided evidence that proves Ukraine's involvement in an alleged incident between Wagner mercenaries and Tuareg rebels, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Aug. 5.
Kuleba met with Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera in Lilongwe, thanking the country for its consistent stance on Russian aggression while highlighting Ukraine's humanitarian assistance.
The transitional government of Mali is severing diplomatic relations with Ukraine over its alleged support of rebel coalitions, government spokesperson Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga announced on Aug. 4.
"We have links with the Ukrainians, but just as we have with everyone else, the French, Americans, and others," said Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson for the pro-independence coalition.
In a post on X, the Strategic Framework for the Defense of the People of Azawad, said it killed 84 Wagner fighters and 47 Malian troops.
According to the Telegram message, Wagner troops and their Malian army comrades fought off the initial assault by Tuareg rebels, but a sandstorm allowed to the rebels to regroup and lay an ambush, resulting in heavy losses for the coalition of Russian mercenaries and Malian government soldiers.
Mali’s army and Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group lost dozens in killed and wounded in a battle with rebels in the country’s north, a spokesman for the rebels claimed on July 27.
The data analyzed by RBC indicated that seven of the 10 countries with the highest increase in vacancies posted by Russian companies were in Africa.
President Volodymyr Zelensky held his first conversation with Gambian leader Adama Barrow, marking a renewal of diplomatic relations after a 20-year pause.
Ukraine plans to expand its Grain From Ukraine humanitarian program to further supply food to Africa, the Caribbean, and other regions, according to Andriy Yermak, head of the President's Office.
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Argentine President Javier Milei and Kenyan President William Ruto to discuss bilateral cooperation, trade, and food security.
According to the Bloomberg report, Russian officials have been threatening African students and young workers not to extend their visas unless "they agree to join the military." Such a tactic was first deployed by the Russian Wagner mercenary group, Bloomberg reported.
Russia and Ukraine have played a complex role in Sudan's civil war, with the Kremlin-backed Wagner mercenary group previously backing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), while Ukrainian commandos reportedly arrived in Sudan in August 2023 to support the government.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in Guinea on June 3 as part of his ongoing visits to West Africa. These visits come amid a backdrop of coups and rising discontent with traditional allies such as France and the United States, prompting some countries to shift their alliances towards Moscow.
U.S. State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller commented on the sanctions, saying that the companies were "advancing the Kremlin-backed Wagner Group's security operations and its illicit mining endeavors in Africa."
