Tag: AfricaCorps
Russia Opens New Mali Supply Route
The reported journey of the sanctioned Russian cargo ship Mikhail Britnev from Arkhangelsk via Baltiysk to Lomé, followed by an overland military-equipment convoy through Togo and Burkina Faso to Bamako in July 2026. The previous Conakry–Bamako corridor is shown for comparison; routes are schematic where exact tracking was unavailable. Illustration:…
Russia Builds Toward Madagascar’s 2027 Vote
Madagascar lies near the northern mouth of the Mozambique Channel, on the sea lane connecting southern Africa to the Gulf and Asia, next to some of the largest untapped gas reserves on the continent. That position has made it a quiet prize in a contest most coverage still frames as…
U.S. Weighs Military Action in Mali
The Trump administration is considering direct military action in Mali against al-Qaeda affiliate JNIM, The Washington Post reported on July 22, citing current and former U.S. officials. Officials are reportedly divided; no strike order has been announced. A former official said one administration objective last year was securing overflight rights…
Beyond Piracy: Nigeria Seeks Maritime Allies
On June 1, six navies answered to a single command for the first time. In Lagos, Nigeria inaugurated the Combined Maritime Task Force (CMTF), a joint force to confront piracy, armed robbery, kidnapping, oil theft, illegal fishing and trafficking across waters from Senegal to Angola. Eleven governments had endorsed the…
Moscow Blames Ukraine as Mali Allies Falter
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Borisenko has accused Ukrainian military personnel of creating a “second front” against Russia in Africa, naming Mali and Libya.Borisenko told TASS that Ukrainians were training Islamist fighters in Mali to use drones and alleged that Ukrainian instructors helped attack the Russian tanker Arktik Metagaz off…
The Sahel in Mid-2026: One Conflict Across Many Fronts
The Sahel's security crisis is no longer defined by separate insurgencies in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Militant groups now operate across a single interconnected theater, exploiting weak state control, a fractured regional bloc and a Russian security partnership too limited to fill the vacuum left by departing international forces.…
Lavrov’s Africa Tour Signals Trouble for Moscow’s Sahel Allies
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Niger this week promising deeper military cooperation with Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, the three military governments that make up the Alliance of Sahel States, or AES. The timing tells its own story. Moscow’s closest partners in the region are under pressure, and…
