Moscow’s interest in Africa is purely predatory, says Macron

EMMANUEL MACRON has accused Russia of spreading anti-french propaganda in Africa to serve its “predatory” ambitions in the region.

Speaking on the sidelines of a summit of French-speaking nations in Tunisia, Mr Macron was asked to respond to critics who say France exploits historic economic and political ties in its former colonies to serve its own interests.

“This perception is fed by others, it’s a political project,” the French president told Tv5monde. “I’m no fool, many influencers, sometimes speaking on your programmes, are paid by the Russians. We know them,” he said.

“A number of powers, who want to spread their influence in Africa, are doing this to hurt France, hurt its language, sow doubts, but above all pursue certain interests,” he added.

France, the former colonial power in most of western and central Africa, has long-standing military ties across Francophone Africa and French troops were stationed in Mali for a decade as part of a counter-terrorism operation.

Critics describe the country’s operation as a failure and blame it for further destabilising the region. France has also been jockeying for influence with Russia in recent years, with the deployment of Wagner, the private militia group, in several countries, including the Central African Republic and Mali.

Paris had to withdraw troops from Mali after the African country’s military took power in a 2020 coup amid a breakdown of relations. The military leaders invited Wagner to help with a decade-long battle against Islamist militants and cut ties with France.

Last year, a United Nations report said that Russian military instructors and local troops in the Central African Republic had targeted civilians with excessive force, indiscriminate killings, occupation of schools and looting.

The Kremlin has denied that Russian instructors had taken part in killings or robberies in the gold and diamond-rich country of 4.7 million people.

On Sunday, Mr Macron said Russia’s behaviour was “predatory”.

“You only have to look at what’s going on in the Central African Republic or elsewhere to see that the Russian project under way there, when France is pushed aside, is a project of predation,” Mr Macron said.

“It’s done with the complicity of a Russian military junta.”