Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the rebellion by the Wagner mercenaries will not result in the group pulling out of African countries where he said they are “doing a good job.” Despite the mutiny in Russia and the Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin saying he will move to Belarus, Lavrov claims the events “will not affect the relationship between Moscow and its African friends.” Western powers believe the Wagner group is used to promote Russia’s influence abroad and have accused the group of torture and exploiting natural resources. They offer security to governments in exchange for the exploitation of mines and other natural resources and have been contracted by several nations. But Lavrov said Europe and France, in particular, had “abandoned” the two African countries (CAR and Mali), which had, in turn, asked Russia and Wagner to provide military instructors and “to ensure the security of their leaders”.
SOURCE: EURO NEWS