Syria After Assad: From Player to Instrument
Russia has kept two bases in Syria and lost almost all else, from its client regime to its role between Israel and Damascus. Also here: the August 2026 memorandum, wheat and oil, Iran, Turkey's upper hand, and Moscow's last lever at the UN.
Russia in Syria after Assad: two bases left, one personal channel to al-Sharaa, and a role now set by Turkey, Washington and a veto at the UN.
Neighbors in the House: How the Intelligence Services Took Over Russian Embassies — and Now the Foreign Ministry Itself
Russia's embassies run on two tracks: diplomats in front, SVR, GRU and FSB officers behind them, competing with each other. Also here: the Zaslon unit and its arsenals, three postings compared, and why Lavrov at the top of the Duma list marks the end point.
Russian intelligence in embassies, described by a former diplomat: how the SVR, GRU and FSB share missions, compete, and now push diplomats aside.
Who Runs Russia’s Africa Portfolio: The 2025–2026 Reshuffle and the Erosion of Governability
Russia's Africa portfolio is being carved up among the Kremlin, the military and Dmitriev, with no regional expert at the top. Also here: who holds which post today, three embassies that show the same pattern, and why the Africa Corps is running short of men and money.
Who holds Russia's Africa portfolio after Bogdanov's exit, and why its shift from diplomats to the security agencies has left it less governable.
What Moscow Has to Offer: Russia’s Influence Toolkit and Its Test in Three African Capitals
Moscow brings the same kit to every African capital, and the results in Cairo, Addis Ababa and Kampala could hardly differ more. Also here: what a Russian House really does, Egypt's 94% of the trade, and why Kampala sides with Washington.
The Russian influence toolkit in Africa, from Rosatom to Russian Houses and the church, and what it really yields in Cairo, Addis Ababa and Kampala.
Mali 2026: The Turning Point for Russia’s Africa Corps
In April 2026 Russia lost Kidal, its one trophy in Mali, and Africa Corps fell back to defend Bamako. Also here: the defense minister killed at Kati, the battle for Anefis, new Russian drones, and why Moscow still backs Goïta.
Africa Corps in Mali after the April offensive: the loss of Kidal, the retreat to Bamako, the shift to drones, and why Moscow still stands by Goïta.
The Central African Republic: The Last Bastion and What Is Left of It
The CAR was the last country to give up Wagner, and the switch to Africa Corps changed less than the new patches suggest. Also here: why Touadéra held on, who pays the bill, and the tramadol, gold and fuel networks that survived.
Wagner in the CAR outlasted every other African operation. Why Bangui held on, how Africa Corps took over, and which criminal networks survived the switch.
Strategy Through Opportunism: How Russia’s Presence in Africa Actually Works
Russia does not plan its way into Africa. It moves in when a local crisis opens a vacuum and lets the host pay in resources. Also here: who picks the countries, what Moscow counts as success, why the CAR and the Sahel differ, and how gold keeps the model afloat.
Strategy through opportunism explains Russia in Africa: how Moscow picks crisis-hit countries, measures success and pays its way with gold and barter.
The Southern Flank After Syria: Tobruk and Port Sudan
After losing Syria, Russia is looking south: Tobruk in Libya and Port Sudan on the Red Sea, both stuck for the same reasons. Also here: the Libyan airfields that already work, the Haftar family, and why Burhan keeps the base on ice.
Russian bases after Syria: why Tobruk and Port Sudan stall, what already works in Libya, and how Haftar and Burhan balance Moscow against Washington.
From Wagner to Africa Corps: Selective Absorption and the War It Inherited
Wagner did not leave Africa. Its men stayed under a Defense Ministry flag, while Prigozhin's money and autonomy were cut away. Also here: Redut, Konvoy and Patriot, Ukraine's role at Tinzaouaten, and why the new system keeps losing in Mali.
Wagner to Africa Corps was a selective absorption, not a clean swap. Who stayed, who took over the money, and the wars the new system inherited in Africa.
Through Sudanese Skies: The Syria–Africa Air Bridge in Consular Paperwork
Russia's air bridge to Africa was running through Sudan years before Assad fell. Also here: 686 overflight notes from the author's own desk in Khartoum, two January 2018 notes on military cargo to Bangui, and the route after Syria.
The Russian air bridge to Africa, traced through 686 overflight notes a diplomat in Khartoum prepared: military cargo from Khmeimim to Bangui in 2018.
Russia’s Nuclear Courtship of Ethiopia
Rosatom, Vladimir Putin and Alexander Novak all bid for a role in Ethiopia's energy future, and Abiy Ahmed answers in kind. Also here: African demands for Security Council seats, Lavrov's talks with the Sahel states and a curfew in Madagascar.
How Rosatom, Putin and Novak lined up behind Ethiopia's first nuclear power plant, and what African leaders demanded at the 80th UN General Assembly.
Two African Answers to International Justice
Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger quit the ICC as Félix Tshisekedi asks the world to call Congo's mass crimes genocide. Also here: Sudan's bid to rejoin the AU, Bobi Wine cleared to run in Uganda and Malawi's election result.
The Sahel ICC withdrawal and Tshisekedi's genocide appeal, set against Sudan's bid to rejoin the AU and elections in Uganda and Malawi.
Russia Returns to Business in Sudan
Sudan's trade committee with Russia meets for the first time since the civil war, and Russian firms eye its ports and railways. Also here: the Sahel's exit from the ICC, M23's capture of a Congolese mining town and Machar's treason trial.
Russian investment in Sudan returns as the two countries' trade committee meets for the first time since the civil war began.
Mali Turns 65 With Russia at Its Side
Goïta cites a future gold plant built with Russia as Mali turns 65, and Moscow answers with Soviet history and five Putin calls. Also here: Mali's drone case against Algeria at the ICJ, Guinea's referendum and the Nile dam dispute.
Russia-Mali relations on Mali's 65th Independence Day, plus Bamako's drone case against Algeria at the ICJ and the Nile dam dispute at the UN.
Sahel Uranium After France
A Moscow think tank pitches Russia as the Sahel's uranium partner now that France and Orano are out. Also here: Chad's unlimited presidential terms, Ethiopia's new central bank chief and Kenya's $2.6 billion dam.
Sahel uranium after France's exit: a PIR Center report names Russia as a key partner, plus Chad's term limits vote and Kenya's new dam.
Burkina Faso Offers Crimea 2,000 Workers
Burkina Faso offers Crimea up to 2,000 workers as Sahel envoys tour the peninsula, and France freezes its security ties with Mali. Also here: Sudan's new foreign minister meets Russia's envoy, and Guinea's one-sided referendum campaign.
Sahel ambassadors in Crimea bring Burkina Faso's offer of 2,000 workers, while France freezes counterterrorism cooperation with Mali.
What Nigeria Learned at Russia’s West-2025 Drills
Nigeria's top general thanks Moscow for West-2025 and its drone lessons, as Mali's MPs back Russia against Ukraine at the UN. Also here: ECOWAS's first visit to the Sahel bloc, and Congo's war that Trump says is over.
Russia-Nigeria defense cooperation after the West-2025 drills, plus the ECOWAS chair's visit to Burkina Faso and the Congo war Trump calls over.
A 49-Year Deal for Russian Industry in Egypt
Russian firms get a tax regime frozen for 49 years at Ain Sokhna, and a Russian payment platform opens in Harare and Lagos. Also here: the Sahel's move to quit the ICC and a UN report calling South Sudan a looted state.
The Russian Industrial Zone in Egypt locks in 49 years of tax terms, as a Russian payment platform opens in Zimbabwe and Nigeria.
Labs, Schools and a Church: Russia’s Toolkit in Africa
Moscow trains Sahel lab teams for "epidemiological sovereignty," builds schools in CAR and lays a church stone in Kenya. Also here: Chad's vote for unlimited seven-year terms and Sudan's ban on private gold exports.
How Russia pitches epidemiological sovereignty to Africa, alongside schools in CAR, a church in Kenya and Chad's vote on presidential terms.
Algiers Hosts Moscow and Washington on the Same Day
A Russian submarine docks in Algiers the same day a US special operations commander meets the head of Algeria's land forces. Also here: Algeria's new government, 7,400 new M23 recruits and Sudan's 81 percent inflation.
The Russian navy in Algeria and a US special operations chief in Algiers on the same day, plus Algeria's new government and Sahel court plans.
Washington’s Minerals, Beijing’s Cameras, Moscow’s Gateway
Washington backs a Congo-Rwanda minerals deal, Beijing sells surveillance cameras and Moscow pitches a Suez gateway to Africa. Also here: Algeria's new prime minister and Malawi on the eve of a hard election.
Great power competition in Africa in one issue: a US-backed minerals deal for Congo and Rwanda, Chinese surveillance tech and a Russian gateway.
A Quartet Plan for Sudan and Moscow’s Caveats
The US, Saudis, Egypt and the UAE propose a truce and transition for Sudan, while Moscow warns against constraining the government. Also here: Ebola in Kasai, Zambia's debt deal and Russia's grain exports to Africa.
A Sudan peace plan from the US, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE, US sanctions on Islamists, and Russia's caveats at the UN Security Council.
Ethiopia Goes Electric as Africa Asks for Capital
Ethiopia bans imports of petrol and diesel cars and already runs 115,000 electric vehicles, backed by cheap hydropower. Also here: Belgium's foreign minister plans a Kigali visit, and Sudan swears in a new foreign minister.
The green transition in Africa, from Ethiopia's ban on combustion car imports to the Addis Ababa climate summit's call for capital over pledges.
Media Objectivity and the Gaza War: An Israeli Perspective
An Israeli analyst answers a Saudi-hosted forum: Israeli media stayed plural, but Israel lost the online war to Hamas. Also here: three drivers of bias in Gaza war coverage and eight rules for responsible newsrooms.
How Gaza war coverage in Israel passed the test of pluralism while Israel lost the online information war, an Israeli view from the Jeddah forum.
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