The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) released a new report today, The Wagner
Group In Central Sahel: Decolonization or Destabilization? The report analyzes
the implications of the Kremlin-based Wagner Group’s involvement in countering
insurgencies in Africa’s central Sahel region. The report finds that the Wagner
Group, a private military company (PMC), has not only shifted regional
counterterrorism efforts towards Russia and away from the West, but has also
created long-term challenges in the fight against the global networks of ISIS
and al-Qaeda.





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New CEP Report: The Wagner Group In The Central Sahel – Decolonization Or
Destabilization?


(New York, N.Y.) – The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) released a new report
<[link removed]> today, The Wagner Group
In Central Sahel: Decolonization or Destabilization?The report analyzes the
implications of the Kremlin-based Wagner Group’s involvement in countering
insurgencies in Africa’s central Sahel region. The report finds that the Wagner
Group, a private military company (PMC), has not only shifted regional
counterterrorism efforts towards Russia and away from the West, but has also
created long-term challenges in the fight against the global networks of ISIS
and al-Qaeda.



Please click here <[link removed]> to
read the full report.



The report examines three countries – Mali
<[link removed]>,
Burkina Faso
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, and Niger—that each initially enlisted support from France to contain the
spread of violent extremism that began in 2012. But following successive
political coups France quickly fell out of favor throughout the region,
resulting in the total evacuation of French forces by the end of 2023. The
Wagner Group set out to fill the remaining security gap, but the PMC’s
activities have been marked with controversies and significant allegations of
crimes against humanity.



CEP’s report finds that by aligning with the Wagner Group, the nations
involved are limiting themselves to heavy-handed counterterrorism responses
that compromise infrastructural and long-term development initiatives. Wagner’s
tactics have resulted in indiscriminate aggression towards civilians, while
national troops have also been accused of torturing, raping, and looting from
villages and internally displaced people (IDP) camps, making it clear that
Wagner has introduced a sever level of insecurity to every facet of society.



Violent extremists have significantly increased their number of attacks since
the Wagner Group became active in the region. They have also seen an increase
of recruitment opportunities, as indiscriminate state-sponsored violence and
inadequate security persuades civilians to shift their support away from the
state and towards the insurgencies.



For host governments, the Wagner Group’s true value lies in its ability to
keep coup governments in power. The countries facing insurgencies require
“security” that Wagner says it provides – despite significant evidence to the
contrary. In return, the coup governments offer the funding that Moscow needs
through lucrative mining and security contracts.



The report concludes that the Wagner Group’s interventions are ineffective,
and that long-term regional stability will instead require a reliable security
sector accountable to standards of international human rights law. CEP
recommends implementing accountability mechanisms to ensure that troops are
complying with established military and human rights standards. International
governing bodies should also continue to monitor and sanction individuals and
entities that are enabling, supporting, or profiting from the Wagner Group’s
presence in their countries.



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