Evgeniya Sokolenko 06:59, 30.07.24 – UNIAN
The military leadership could use this to stop the deployment of the Wagnerites.
Russian militants from the Wagner Group in Mali have recently suffered colossal losses, and now the Kremlin will demand a large-scale replacement of soldiers in Africa with servicemen from the Russian Defense Ministry’s African Corps. Part of this corps was recently transferred to the Kharkov region to support the enemy’s offensive.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, several critical Russian mibloggers claim that the Defense Ministry is gloating over the losses of militants. There is a possibility that the military leadership will use this to stop the deployment of the “Wagnerites” in the Sahel and replace them entirely with the Ministry of Defense’s African Corps.
In their statements, the bloggers cited an unnamed source in the Putin administration who confirmed such changes. Moreover, the military will be sent to replace the militants in the entire “Sahel trinity” (Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger).
Analysts estimate that the Afrika Korps probably lacks the current capabilities to properly replace the Wagner Group, particularly in Mali. The reason may be that part of the corps has been transferred to the Kharkiv region, and therefore they may be withdrawn from Ukraine.
“A large-scale replacement of Wagner after losses such as those incurred during the recent ambush would likely result in the redeployment of some Afrika Korps fighters in Mali away from the front lines in Ukraine, and the Russian military command probably does not view a full replacement of Wagner in Mali or elsewhere in the Sahel as a priority at this time,” the ISW report said.
The defeat of the “Wagnerites” in Mali
Recently, the media reported that in the African republic of Mali, Tuareg rebels routed dozens of junta soldiers and mercenaries of the Russian private military company Wagner. Among those killed was the author of the propaganda channel GreyZone, who participated in the war against Ukraine.
Subsequently, the rebels proposed handing over the captured mercenaries to Ukraine. The GUR stated that information about this possibility is being monitored and verified. According to the agency’s spokesman Andrey Yusov, this failure of the Russian Federation in Mali will have negative consequences for it.
On July 29, journalists published a photograph showing Tuareg rebels standing with a Ukrainian flag after the defeat of Wagner PMC mercenaries in Mali.
“This photo apparently indicates Tuaregs’ support for Ukraine, which is pursuing Wagner mercenaries across the African continent,” the Kyiv Post wrote, citing sources in Ukraine’s defense and security sector.
There is an obvious opportunity here. The Tuaregs have tasted putinaZi blood and like it. They have demonstrated that they are pro-Ukraine. They are freedom-loving people.
So why not hire a division of them to work as mercs in Ukraine?
Maybe that’ll be possible once Mali is cleansed of cockroaches.