Russia has intensified its diplomatic relationship with French-speaking Africa after the second Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg. It has focused on dealing with growing French neo-colonialism which obstructs Russia’s desire to expand geopolitical and military influence in the West African region. The republics of Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Mali have come under the stringent control of Kremlin, as leaders frequently shuttle between their capitals and Moscow.

Moscow's geopolitical and military inroads are steadily gaining ground. It has tightened its hold across the Sahel-Saharan part of Africa,  strategically extending militarized influence towards to the Gulf coastal West Africa.  

Policy experts and researchers writings about (i) Russia's alleged involvement in the political changes in French colonies with the fractured economy and (ii) the region's breeding of armed Islamic jihadist groups demonstrate Russia's first drastic step towards combating terrorism and ultimately penetrating into the entire G5 Sahel in West Africa.

Moscow says it is seriously concerned about the economic under-developments, the deepening instability and the impoverished population in the region. Moscow has showered humanitarian assistance, described as "delivery at no-cost" and intended to ensure food security during the fourth quarter 2023, in these countries.  

Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger and Mali have battered their natural resources, in exchange for creating military bases in the respective territories. Russian state-owned arms trader Rosoboronexport, as part of signed military-technical agreements, has delivered Russian-made combat and transport helicopters, armoured personnel carriers, small arms and ammunition to these Sahel-Saharan African countries, Vedomosti newspaper reports.

Oleg Ozerov, Ambassador-at-Large at the Russian Foreign Ministry, Head of the Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum, says that Russia has no military bases nor military troops in Africa. "There are appeals to the Russian side for help in ensuring security. This is not a military presence. Military presence is when troops are sent. We send instructors at the request of the African states themselves. But all this is not a military presence," Ozerov says.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has received almost ten (10) foreign ministers (including Nigeria, Gambia, Gabon, Mali and Sierra Leone). Kremlin hosted Equatorial Guinean President President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, then Chadian Transitional President Mahamat Idriss Deby in January, followed by Guinea-Bissau leader Umaro Sissoco Embalo. Moscow is moving further down from the Sahel-Saharan region, an elongated landlocked territory located between North Africa (Maghreb) and West Africa, to the Atlantic coast of West Africa.

Guinea Bissau leader Umaro Sissoco Embalo was at the second Russia-Africa summit held in July 2023. Putin reiterated expanding bilateral partnership in economic, scientific and technological spheres, on grounds that ties between two countries are rooted in long-standing traditions of friendship, as well as the principles of equality and mutual respect. "We have been maintaining effective inter-parliamentary and inter-agency ties too. Today, we have an opportunity to discuss our performance under bilateral agreements in various sectors and further steps to expand our cooperation. I must note that students from your country continue to study in Russia. We are ready to offer Guinea-Bissau an even bigger quota," he told the delegation.  

Umaro Sissoco Embalo, on his part, expressed gratitude for the support which Russia has been giving to the Government and the people of Guinea-Bissau. Over 70 percent of Guinea-Bissau's servicemen and civilian officials were trained in the Soviet Union.  

Russia is looking to gain political support from African countries on a number of issues, including the 'special military operation' in Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia. Moscow is seriously working on arrangements for the first meeting of this kind, scheduled to take place in November 2024 in Sochi. St Petersburg's late July Russia-Africa summit resulted in the adoption of a solid package of joint documents, including a detailed declaration and a specific plan of action until 2026.

Nonetheless, many experts say Russia has its own distinctive style and approach, set out to battle against exploitation of resources, or better still what is often phrased "the scramble for resources" in Africa.  

Samir Bhattacharya, an Associate Fellow at Observer Research Foundation (ORF), where he works on geopolitics with particular reference to Africa in the changing global order, says Africa, especially the French-speaking West African countries, continue to face multiple democratic challenges with a wider negative impact across the region. The narrative that depicts Russia a proactive coup advocate is compelling and seems to hold water.  

A close examination reveals that the Sahel Region has endured violent extremism, civil unrest, and poor governance for a very long period. It unmistakably shows how France and other Western powers are losing ground in this region. Frustration with France and other foreign powers increased fairly naturally as their military intervention failed to stem the Islamist insurgency that was spreading throughout the region.

Blame games on external influences aside, there is fear that as many African nations continue to be beset by widespread complaints of poor governance, nepotism, and distress, many more within the region and beyond may eventually see military takeovers of a similar nature. Tracking all these bilateral developments implies that Russia's engagement in Africa definitely requires an in-depth study, according to Bhattacharya.

In another insightful interview, Professor Sergiu Mișcoiu at the Faculty of European Studies, Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca (Romania), where he serves as a Director of the Centre for International Cooperation and as Director of the Centre for African Studies, discusses the political situation in the French-speaking West African countries, the existing multiple challenges and Russia's diplomacy within the context of current geopolitical changes and the scramble for influence in Africa.

Professor Sergiu Mișcoiu argues that neo-colonialism in Africa has been a growing reality after the end of the Cold War and reached a pinnacle by the early 2000s. More salient cases are the former French colonies, and Russia is focused on uprooting France out of the continent. Vladimir Putin has intended to restore the might of the Soviet Union, including its influence over the African continent. But unlike the USSR, Russia has not been keen on the financial and logistic resources needed to massively invest in the key-sectors, like China.

African countries are bound to wake up to a common understanding of the true meaning of their colonial past for the present, and determine their own future existence. And in fact, the leaders and the elites have to engage in development decision-making processes, and at the same time have to play their roles as autonomous actors instead of being pawns in global politics.

By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh

The author writes frequently on Africa, Russia and the BRICS.