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Is Niger Coup a Proxy War Between Russia and the West? What We Know
Newsweek via MSN ^ | Aug 2, 2023

Posted on 08/02/2023 7:27:20 PM PDT by McGruff

Reports from Niger about citizens raising Russian flags and chanting "Wagner" have been circulating in the week since its President Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown in a coup.

These accounts are prompting questions about Moscow's relationship with the former French colony in West Africa—and what role the Wagner Group of mercenaries could play there.

Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin welcomed the news that General Abdourahamane Tiani had taken power, describing it as a move against French "colonizers" and hinting in a Telegram voice message that his fighters might offer security services.

There is no evidence the Kremlin had any involvement in the military overthrow and it has described the situation as "cause for serious concern," but the coup comes as anti-French sentiment is rising in a region pivoting towards Moscow.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: africa; niger; russia
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1 posted on 08/02/2023 7:27:20 PM PDT by McGruff
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To: McGruff

While the West is breaking itself in the Ukraine War it cannot put its boot down as hard on its African client statesmen. The African client states that are strong enough are breaking free from those that have been dominating them.


2 posted on 08/02/2023 7:38:45 PM PDT by wildcard_redneck (The Forever War is a crime against humanity)
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To: McGruff

This is just ages old corrupt stuff. There are countries in Africa that haven’t had a real election since the Europeans left. And this used to be the norm worldwide. Freedom and equality are the exception, not the rule. War and anarchy is man’s natural condition.

The government of this country used to be propped up by the French Foreign Legion. France hasn’t won a war since forever and they’ve stopped even trying. Now the government of this country is propped up by the Wagner Group. Who the heck cares?

There are countries in Africa that are making progress in terms of elections, human rights, economic development, and international trade; in some cases, in the face of radical Islamic terrorism. We should focus on them.


3 posted on 08/02/2023 8:00:52 PM PDT by Redmen4ever
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To: McGruff; All

From the 31st

NIGER AT THE BRINK OF REGIONAL WAR; France and West African coalition threatens war - Niger Coup

Defense Politics Asia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sW8HBKJhjus


4 posted on 08/02/2023 8:11:16 PM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: wildcard_redneck

Exactly. I did read that Nigeria cut off a lot of electricity.

But Burkina Faso and Mali are both saying they will leave ECOWAS and defend Niger. Algeria also.

A lot of Africa loves Russia right now.

US press are not so great at keeping up with the world.
Too busy propping up Biden.


5 posted on 08/02/2023 8:23:09 PM PDT by MarMema
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To: McGruff

Niger, please.


6 posted on 08/02/2023 8:35:59 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist
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To: MarMema
The US press is the ministry of propaganda for the Biden regime. They've dropped all pretenses of impartiality.


7 posted on 08/02/2023 8:40:54 PM PDT by In_Iowa_not_from
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To: wildcard_redneck

No Wagner can continue to colonize Africa and take Africans Gold.


8 posted on 08/02/2023 8:42:00 PM PDT by USA-FRANCE
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To: USA-FRANCE

Now Wagner can continue to colonize Africa and take Africans Gold.

Typo corrected.


9 posted on 08/02/2023 8:43:28 PM PDT by USA-FRANCE
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To: Redmen4ever

“There are countries in Africa that haven’t had a real election since the Europeans left.”

They didn’t have any before the Euros left either.


10 posted on 08/02/2023 8:48:09 PM PDT by DesertRhino (Dogs are called man's best friend. Moslems hate dogs. Add it up..)
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To: USA-FRANCE

Wagner is better then France. Like Niger is one of resource richest countries in the world, but everything gets stolen by French and they have only $700 GDP per capita left.
80% of their money are in Paris and can be spent only if the France agrees, mostly on French contracts.
Time to pull a rag from under this crap.
Also France gets most of its nuclear fuel from Niger and it is most of their electricity. Not to mention a gas pipeline.
France is set to suck rope for its colonial abuse.


11 posted on 08/02/2023 9:22:19 PM PDT by NorseViking
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To: McGruff

MSN BS. Moscow always has an “interest” in communist sponsored or aided leftist revolutions. That is how they and Red China operate.


12 posted on 08/02/2023 9:40:02 PM PDT by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper (Figures )
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To: DesertRhino

They typically had one. At the time the Euros left.


13 posted on 08/03/2023 12:56:30 AM PDT by Redmen4ever
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To: Redmen4ever
“There are countries in Africa that haven't had a real election since the Europeans left.”

Like which countries for example?

“France hasn't won a war since forever “

How many have we won lately?

“How Now the government of this country is propped up by the Wagner Group.”

Nonsense!

14 posted on 08/03/2023 1:42:12 AM PDT by SmokingJoe ( )
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To: USA-FRANCE
Wagner is not colonizing anywhere in Africa. Plenty of American and French soldiers in Niger though. .
15 posted on 08/03/2023 1:48:54 AM PDT by SmokingJoe ( )
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To: SmokingJoe

Hi SmokingJoe

France’s history of major wars:

We won WWII, WWI and what we call the U.S. War of Independence (actually part of a much bigger war), they didn’t; And, they lost the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, and the Napoleonic Wars (considered as a whole).

If you want to include minor wars and wars in which France was merely a member of a large coalition, the record is mixed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wars_involving_France

Plus, since WWII, France has used the Foreign Legion to fight wars. It no longer even has an army of its own. France is a hallowed-out country. It is losing its national identity, having lost its ability to defend itself. Looking back, it’s difficult to understand why the victorious powers gave them a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council at the end of WWII.

How many wars have we won lately: all of them. We won the war and lost the subsequent peace in several minor wars. And, we - not a Foreign Legion - fought those wars. But, if you define victory as something more than a military victory, we lost those wars. We did not transform those countries into democracies that could defend themselves. The neo-conservative theory that one election transforms a country into a democracy was tested and discovered to be wrong.

Prior to these recent wars, we won the Cold War (although we didn’t win all the parts of the Cold War). The Soviet Union fell apart, we didn’t. There’s a sense in which our winning the Cold War was our greatest ever victory. We should have some confidence that with Peace through Strength, we will win in the future. We just have to be patient.

You can deny that the Wagner Group is in Africa, but you just lose credibility doing so. It’s one thing to interpret facts (especially on a discussion board), but at some point, denial of facts reflects on your ability to process information.

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/russias-wagner-group-in-africa-influence-commercial-concessions-rights-violations-and-counterinsurgency-failure/


16 posted on 08/03/2023 2:38:41 AM PDT by Redmen4ever
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To: SmokingJoe

“How many have we won lately?”

By “we” I take it you mean Russia, Iran, North Korea, or some kooky US evangelicals. Cuz the US won Iraq as recently as 2015 vs. ISIS and before that 2003 vs Saddam. If you want to throw in AIQ then that’s 2007 for a trifecta of opponents. Oh, then there’s 2004 defeat of the Iranian Mahdi in the MND-CS and MND-S.


17 posted on 08/03/2023 2:53:23 AM PDT by Justa (If where you came from is so great then why aren't Floridians moving there?)
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To: McGruff

Can’t blame Russia for this rising populist rebellion against modern colonialism that still exists in Africa. Too many Africans see the disparity between their living standards, and those of the countries that own their natural resources and install weak corrupt govts to protect the interests of the mine owners.

Though apparently the campaign to blame Russia for the roots of rebellion has begun, with planted media releases.


18 posted on 08/03/2023 4:06:08 AM PDT by silverleaf (Inside Every Progressive Is A Totalitarian Screaming To Get Out” —David Horowitz)
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To: SmokingJoe

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions aimed at disrupting gold mining activities that fund the Wagner Group in Africa, vowing to hold the mercenaries accountable for abuses days after they staged a mutiny in Russia.

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230627-us-targets-wagner-group-over-gold-in-africa-days-after-mutiny

So yes, Wagner on the orders of the neo-Soviets in the Kremlin is indeed colonizing a number of countries in Africa. Gold is king! Gold is what Russia needs to finance all their imperialist warmongering activities all over the planet.

While the USA has been a kind of world-police at times, Russia on the other hand is behaving as world-gangsters.


19 posted on 08/03/2023 6:59:54 AM PDT by USA-FRANCE
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To: USA-FRANCE

The United States has very little power in Africa right now.
Most of the economic aid, roads, railways etc are built by the Chinese.
I don’t remember the last time America built any railways in any African country.
America has worked itself into irrelevance in Africa.
Threats from America will be laughed out of town.


20 posted on 08/03/2023 9:41:47 AM PDT by SmokingJoe ( )
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