In mid-2024, the reputation of Russia was greatly hurt by the significant setbacks. Ukraine attempted a surprising attack on Russian territory. This incident caught many off guard. At the same time, the Russian supporter group, Wagner mercenary, also faced one of its deadliest defeats in Mali.

In July, a group of Tuareg rebels joined with the terrorist groups active in Mali,  Burkina Faso, and Niger. They teamed up and attacked a Malian army unit. This unit was supported by the Wagners fighters. This fight was continued for 3 days and after this heavy fight many Malian soldiers and Wagner fighters were either killed or taken prisoner.

The attack clearly expressed the struggle of the Malian junta in order to secure their country. It also raises concern about the heavy fight between Ukraine and Russia in Africa. As Ukraine became more involved in the war on the continents, including in Sudan. 

The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine is also seriously affecting the African countries. Back to 2022, when this war began. At that time, many African countries wanted to stay away from this conflict and never get involved in the war. As they saw as a proxy war between the US and Russia.  However, many Western countries are sending weapons to Ukraine. And also some of the countries admitted  it was indeed a proxy war. In response, the African countries took the wise decision and decided to stay out of this matter. 

However, as Ukraine now gets involved in conflicts in Sudan and Mali, it seems that Africa is being drawn into these global disputes. This could have very dangerous consequences for the continent, which already struggles with issues like ethnicity, religion, poverty, and inequality. Libya’s situation clearly shows how foreign interference can lead to long-lasting conflict and instability. It is strongly believed that African leaders must avoid making the same mistakes to protect their countries from similar outcomes.

The recent developments also point out the troubling situation. The representative of the Ukraine security service,  Andriy Yusov, explained on TV that Ukraine also got involved in the attack on the Malian army and Wegner. It also raises many questions about Ukraine’s role in the region. 

Additionally, Yurii Pyvovarov, Ukraine’s ambassador to several West African countries, is accused by Senegal of backing the attack in Mali. This has led Mali and Niger to cut ties with Ukraine, and Senegal has called in the Ukrainian ambassador for an explanation. The West African economic group, Ecowas, has strongly condemned any outside interference.

This is a significant blow to Ukraine’s position in Africa. Despite Ukraine’s denial of any support for terrorist groups, the accusation and the resulting backlash have put Ukraine in a difficult spot. Meanwhile, Russia is using this situation to paint Ukraine as an enemy of Africa and accuse it of opening a “second front” on the continent.

What is Ukraine’s position?

Ukraine’s president organized a summit in June 2024. This is the great effort to get world support against the Russian attack on Ukraine. Many countries joined this summit and also many leaders approximately stood in favor of the ukraine. At the same time, many African countries do not comment on the summit and also stay away from the matter. Only 12 African countries stood against Russia and supported Ukraine. Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso didn’t even come, and fewer than 20 African countries sent representatives.

This clearly highlights that African countries do not have any interest in Russia-Ukraine conflict. They also avoid making strong statements on the United Nations votes. Despite the fact that Ukraine has been trying to get involved in it. 

It seems that Ukraine’s issues in places like Mali might actually make it harder for them to gain support in Africa. Many African countries are dealing with their own serious problems, like terrorism, and don’t want to get mixed up in conflicts far from their own borders.

Russia is taking advantage of the complexities in West Africa. Many Western countries like France leave to support Russia. 

At the same time, the attack in Mali also caused many problems. On this attack the Russian’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said that Russia will assist Mali with the military actions. 

Russia is taking advantage of the problems in West Africa. With Western countries like France leaving, Russia has stepped in to take their place. This clearly highlights that Russia wants to play a major role in fighting terrorism there. 

Since Russia is losing support from Western countries due to its actions in Ukraine, it’s focusing on Africa. Ukraine is also trying to get support from Africa by opening new embassies there. So, if Ukraine has trouble, it might end up helping Russia.