"Africa has become a 'cash cow' for Russia to fund the war against Ukraine," said U.S. General Anderson
The African region has become a tool for Russia in financing and supporting the war against Ukraine.
This was stated by General Dougwin Anderson, commander of U.S. Africa Command.
He noted that the reduction of the U.S. military presence and that of its allies in the region has significantly weakened the U.S.’s ability to track new threats.
“With our regional presence reduced by 75% over the past decade, compounded by a decline in the number of our allies, we are facing an intelligence black hole,” Anderson said.
According to him, Africa has effectively become a resource base for the Kremlin:
“Africa also serves as Putin’s wallet, where Russia exploits instability to extract resources, as well as human lives to fuel its military machine,” the general emphasized.
Anderson asserts that Russia positions its presence in the region as a partnership in the fields of security and counterterrorism, particularly in countries where Western military presence has previously diminished. At the same time, he said, Russian entities are gradually filling the security vacuum.
Separately, he commented on reports of the recruitment of citizens from African countries to participate in the war against Ukraine, noting that such cases “are cause for concern.”
Russia has published hundreds of anti-Ukrainian and anti-French articles in 35 French-language media outlets in West Africa, sometimes even without the knowledge of the editorial offices themselves.
In terms of AI adoption in the economy, Russia was on par with Africa.
