Russian Wagner group is engaged in illegal gold mining in Sudan: Troika

March 21, 2022 (KHARTOUM) – The Russian private group Wagner is engaged in illegal gold mining in Sudan and anti-democratic propaganda, said the Troika diplomats based in Khartoum on Monday.

In a joint statement released to mark the first month of the Russian attack on Ukraine, British Ambassador Giles Leifer, Norwegian Ambassador Therese Loken Gheziel and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Lucy Tamlyn openly attacked the Russian contractor that cooperates closely with the Rapid Support Service in Sudan (RSF).

“In Sudan, the Wagner Group (…) spreads disinformation on social media and engages in illicit activities connected to gold mining,” read the statement.

“Wagner Group activities undermine the good governance and respect for rule of law that the Sudanese people have been fighting for since the revolution,” further stressed the Western diplomats without referring to their reported cooperation with the RSF.

Wagner, which generally overlaps with Russian foreign policy aims, has established political, military, and economic activities in Sudan since the former regime of Omer al-Bashir.

At the time, the mercenary group was engaged in military training for the special intervention units of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) and the RSF which was part of the security agency.

After the Sudanese revolution, they are mainly working with the RSF paramilitary force under the command of the Deputy Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council.

The group which is also more involved in the landlocked neighbouring Central African Republic become gradually more involved in the mining activities in Sudan where they were officially deployed to guard gold mines.

In a report released this month, the Foreign Policy Research Institute said that the purpose of Wagner’s presence in Sudan is to help Russia to transform its relationship with Sudan from a “transactional relationship” “based on arms sales to a more comprehensive security partnership”.

The civilian transitional government in Sudan opposed a deal with the former regime to establish a naval base in Port Sudan. However, after the coup of October 2021, Sudan’s military rulers pledged to reconsider this position.

The Troika diplomats reiterated that their countries would continue their support “the Sudanese people as they strive to fulfil the aspirations of the revolution” despite Sudan’s abstention from condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

on March 2, Sudan abstained from condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the UN General Assembly meeting where 141 out of 181 countries voted to condemn it.

(ST)