Wagner’s Attempted Coup Will Not Change Our Relationship With “Partners & Friends-Russia’s Foreign Minister Says

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has been speaking about the future of Wagner fighters who are operating in Africa.

The focus of attention since the weekend’s tumultuous events involving Wagner and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has understandably been on Russia and Ukraine.

But the mercenary group has a presence in several African countries – including the Central African Republic and Mali, where they have been accused of committing atrocities and war crimes.

There have been questions over the future of those African deployments, which were seen by many as unofficially representing Russia.

But speaking on the state-owned RT channel, Mr Lavrov has said that the Wagner operations will continue, the AFP news agency reports.

Wagner members “are working there as instructors. This work, of course, will continue,” the minister said.

He said the aborted rebellion would not change Russia’s relationship with “partners and friends”, AFP quotes him as saying.