Employees of the U.S. private military company Bancroft have arrived in the Central African Republic (CAR). According to RFI sources, the mercenaries are stationed in Bangui and will train the local army to protect the mining sector. The mines, which are controlled by «people close to the government» of CAR, will generate revenue for the state, Bancroft and the local communities. The CAR is rich in natural resources, such as gold, diamonds, uranium and oil, but has been plagued by violence and instability since gaining independence from France in 1960.
The interlocutors of the publication suggest that the U.S. may use it in the CAR to put an end to the Russian hegemony in the republic’s institutions, which has cracked after the death of the founder of PMC «Wagner» Yevgeny Prigozhin. A source in military circles believes that the Americans «decided to compete with Wagner» on its territory. However, the US State Department denies any connection with Bancroft.
Russia has been involved in the CAR since 2017, when it obtained a UN exemption to supply weapons and trainers to the government forces. Russia also deployed hundreds of Wagner mercenaries to secure mining concessions and influence the political situation in the country.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led the Wagner Group, was killed on 23 August 2023 when a business jet carrying him and his top lieutenants crashed in Tver Oblast, north of Moscow, killing all 10 people on board.
