Ghana Says Burkina Faso Paid Russian Mercenaries with Mine

Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo said the military government of Burkina Faso has hired Russian mercenaries to help fight an insurgency in their country and is using a mine to pay them.

Militants have made increasing inroads into Burkina Faso, triggering two coup d’etats this year, one in January and one in September, as the military tries to re-establish control of the country.

Experts believe Burkina Faso’s current leader, army captain Ibrahim Traore, is using Russian mercenaries from the shadowy Wagner group to fight the jihadists.

Speaking Wednesday in Washington as part of the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ Summit, Akufo-Addo expressed concern about the suspected development.

“Today, Russian mercenaries are on our northern border,” Akufo-Addo said. “Burkina Faso has now entered into an arrangement to go along with Mali in employing the Wagner forces there and I believe a mine in the southern part of Burkina has been allocated to them as a form of payment for their service. To have them operating on our northern border is particularly distressing for us in Ghana.”

An official involved in the border security of Burkina Faso, speaking on condition of anonymity, commented on Akufo-Addo's remarks in a text message to VOA.

He did not deny the presence of mercenaries, instead saying “Burkina does not need foreign fighters, but equipment. We have men capable” of fighting terrorism.

Mutaru Mumuni Muqthar, executive director of West Africa Center for Counter-Extremism (WACCE), said the recent withdrawal of European, mainly French, peacekeeping troops from the Sahel is a loss in the fight against jihadists.

He said it will enable Russia’s push to establish a strong foothold in Africa.

“Now that we are seeing the withdrawal of the French forces, which is followed by the other European partners, is a big blow to the region and to all of us here along the coast of the Gulf of Guinea,” Muqthar said. “The Russian mercenaries are in there and they seem to be building some significant sense of goodwill from the local population as against traditional European partners and that should worry all of us.”

Muqthar said focusing solely on using combat to fight terrorism in West Africa is not the best way to go, saying it failed in the Sahel regions.

“Combat measures are very important to hold territories and to stop these extremists,” he said. “But it’s not enough to sustain any gains relating to combating terrorism. We need to match it with significant noncombat measures, which is the people. It’s important that military measures must be development linked and must be linked to the realities of the problem because people don’t just wake up to fight.”

Recently, West African leaders met in Accra to discuss terrorism and worsening security in the region. They resolved at the Accra Initiative to establish an anti-jihadist force within a month to protect coastal countries, such as Ghana.

https://www.voanews.com/a/ghana-says-burkina-faso-paid-russian-mercenaries-with-mine-/6878119.html

Akufo-Addo should shut up. The same people he is trying to impress will be the same people that will frustrate the sale of weapons to Ghana when insurgency erupts there. His time is coming.

I think the Ghanaian President wants both the West and The East (Russia) and maybe China to leave Africa alone.

Now that Wagner has its eyes on a mine the Ghanaian President mentioned, good luck trying to get them out of that country. They would ensure that country remains unstable.

Firstcitizen:
Akufo-Addo should shut up. The same people he is trying to impress will be the same people that will frustrate the sale of weapons to Ghana when insurgency erupts there. His time is coming.

You obviously don't know the long term implications of inviting mercenaries from outside to fight your own war, especially in a place like Africa, where exploitation by outsider's holds sway. Mercenaries tends to fuel insurgency more than they can quell it. Win or lose, they always profit.

This Ghanaian is a fool. What is wrong with him?

hayoholla:


You obviously don't know the long term implications of inviting mercenaries from outside to fight your own war, especially in a place like Africa, where exploitation by outsider's holds sway. Mercenaries tends to fuel insurgency more than they can quell it. Win or lose, they always profit.

You that is the expert in implications, where was he when the French government and American government deployed private military contractors to his doorstep in the past?

Firstcitizen:


You that is the expert in implications, where was he when the French government and American government deployed private military contractors to his doorstep in the past?

How can they deploy military contractor on his own soil without his awareness?

hayoholla:


How can they deploy military contractor on his own soil without his awareness?

Did they deploy in Ghana? It is obvious you make comments without taking facts into consideration.Doorstep means close to home and not inside your house.

Are Mali and Burkina Faso Ghanaian colonies?

USA and England and French could not bring peace to Africa so let them try Russia m

Even though I don't want all these foreign military in Africa but Wager won the war for CAR.
They are real fighters and that what Mali and B/F saw, and the reason they invited them.

seunny4lif:
Even though I don't want all these foreign military in Africa but Wager won the war for CAR.
They are real fighters and that what Mali and B/F saw, and the reason they invited them.

you see how Russia has been threatening their former Soviet partners ? I hope they don’t take over these nations..

leofab:
you see how Russia has been threatening their former Soviet partners ? I hope they don’t take over these nations..

Not sure Russia can go to that length.
My own is make Africa leaders looters get their heads together to do something for Africa continent

hayoholla:


You obviously don't know the long term implications of inviting mercenaries from outside to fight your own war, especially in a place like Africa, where exploitation by outsider's holds sway. Mercenaries tends to fuel insurgency more than they can quell it. Win or lose, they always profit.

You can’t generalize! The people notorious for fueling insurgency is the west. For how long was the French military in these regions? Show one country the US has successfully defeated insurgency? Today they fight insurgents in Syria, tomorrow they incorporate some and call them moderates!! The Russians like the Chinese are more business minded, let them try. The west has got their chances with African since the 17th century; they choose to use it for slave trade and colonization. When colonization was off the table, they resulted to exploitation. when pan African nationalism came, they resulted to divide and rule( Libya is still fresh). As if that has not been enough, they sit in Washington and give instructions, lectures and sublime orders to sovereign African nations. While China and Russia were busy building hindreds of KMs of highways, railways, power projects, airports on long term low interest loans, they were busy telling us to allow Steve to wed Steve before they will give us weapons to fight insurgency or funds for developments.

Akufo Ado is a failure who is simply cozying unto the west because he has failed terribly in Ghana domestically. Inflation on paper in Ghana is 40%, but in reality it’s more than 200% in real purchase value, while the cedi has totally become worthless. How do I know this? I live in the Volta region!

Kindly allow the ones that come without preconditions have its try since Africa definitely needs help. It’s been 400 years of west vs just 20 years of east in Africa, the difference is clear!

panafrican:
This Ghanaian is a fool. What is wrong with him?

Why is he a fool?
Russia is destabilising Africa through sales of cheap weapons. AK47s are widely used wespons by militant groups in Africa. Can u tell me why we see more of Russian weapons than western weapons in Africa?

b4ball:


You can’t generalize! The people notorious for fueling insurgency is the west. For how long was the French military in these regions? Show one country the US has successfully defeated insurgency? Today they fight insurgents in Syria, tomorrow they incorporate some and call them moderates!! The Russians like the Chinese are more business minded, let them try. The west has got their chances with African since the 17th century; they choose to use it for slave trade and colonization. When colonization was off the table, they resulted to exploitation. when pan African nationalism came, they resulted to divide and rule( Libya is still fresh). As if that has not been enough, they sit in Washington and give instructions, lectures and sublime orders to sovereign African nations. While China and Russia were busy building hindreds of KMs of highways, railways, power projects, airports on long term low interest loans, they were busy telling us to allow Steve to wed Steve before they will give us weapons to fight insurgency or funds for developments.

Akufo Ado is a failure who is simply cozying unto the west because he has failed terribly in Ghana domestically. Inflation on paper in Ghana is 40%, but in reality it’s more than 200% in real purchase value, while the cedi has totally become worthless. How do I know this? I live in the Volta region!

Kindly allow the ones that come without preconditions have its try since Africa definitely needs help. It’s been 400 years of west vs just 20 years of east in Africa, the difference is clear!

Having conventional military force is different from use of foreign mercenaries? Wagner are mercenaries. They don't fight conventional war. Let us be reasonable. Africa should know Russia and China are here to exploit us. West would fight back and Africans would suffer. Do you want to start learn Chinese or Russian languages?
If we don't want west we shouldn't invite East. This is to avoid confusion.

leofab:
you see how Russia has been threatening their former Soviet partners ? I hope they don’t take over these nations..

How has Russia been threatening it former Soviet partner??

joyandfaith:


Having conventional military force is different from use of foreign mercenaries? Wagner are mercenaries. They don't fight conventional war. Let us be reasonable. Africa should know Russia and China are here to exploit us. West would fight back and Africans would suffer. Do you want to start learn Chinese or Russian languages?
If we don't want west we shouldn't invite East. This is to avoid confusion.

Sometimes, learn to remove your western bias and sentiments from hard facts! It’s you and your cohorts that labeled Wagner mercenaries. The actual name is PMC; private military contractors and every major country has them. You probably don’t know about blackwaters right? And that the US government contracted them to fight and provide military services along side their regular army in Iraq!

You always shout about sovereignty and Ukrainian sovereign alliances! So BF and Mail are not sovereign to make their own sovereign military decisions and alliance? Be it a regular army or PMC is a sovereign decision, so long it works for them. It’s not cast in stone. If it don’t work, it gets revoked. Afterall, they expelled France too. If you fail to see that it’s a sovereign decision, you have simply invalidated all your arguments on NL.

You stated that China and Russia is in Africa for exploitation? So what the west did for 400 years is called what? Even up to recently, they would not provide weapons or infrastructures unless you adopt gay rights masked as human rights! You cannot wish away the facts that just 20 years of eastern engagements have translated to thousands of KMs of highways, railways, airports, power infrastructures scattered all over Africa without preconditions and meddling. Simply business! Till today, is the United States not stealing Libyan and Syrian oil?

A case of a bad and jilted ex wife telling her ex husband to be wary of the new wife who is so far without faults. Allow the man be and decide for himself who is a bigger witch.

b4ball:

Sometimes, learn to remove your western bias and sentiments from hard facts! It’s you and your cohorts that labeled Wagner mercenaries. The actual name is PMC; private military contractors and every major country has them. You probably don’t know about blackwaters right? And that the US government contracted them to fight and provide military services along side their regular army in Iraq!

You always shout about sovereignty and Ukrainian sovereign alliances! So BF and Mail are not sovereign to make their own sovereign military decisions and alliance? Be it a regular army or PMC is a sovereign decision, so long it works for them. It’s not cast in stone. If it don’t work, it gets revoked. Afterall, they expelled France too. If you fail to see that it’s a sovereign decision, you have simply invalidated all your arguments on NL.

You stated that China and Russia is in Africa for exploitation? So what the west did for 400 years is called what? Even up to recently, they would not provide weapons or infrastructures unless you adopt gay rights masked as human rights! You cannot wish away the facts that just 20 years of eastern engagements have translated to thousands of KMs of highways, railways, airports, power infrastructures scattered all over Africa without preconditions and meddling. Simply business! Till today, is the United States not stealing Libyan and Syrian oil?

A case of a bad and jilted ex wife telling her ex husband to be wary of the new wife who is so far without faults. Allow the man be and decide for himself who is a bigger witch.

Ok. No point in arguing with you since you already see Russia as your savior. My position is never allow foreign mercenaries from west or east to enter your conflict. Aftermath is bad. Nations that produce weapons love wars. All of them.

b4ball:

Sometimes, learn to remove your western bias and sentiments from hard facts! It’s you and your cohorts that labeled Wagner mercenaries. The actual name is PMC; private military contractors and every major country has them. You probably don’t know about blackwaters right? And that the US government contracted them to fight and provide military services along side their regular army in Iraq!

You always shout about sovereignty and Ukrainian sovereign alliances! So BF and Mail are not sovereign to make their own sovereign military decisions and alliance? Be it a regular army or PMC is a sovereign decision, so long it works for them. It’s not cast in stone. If it don’t work, it gets revoked. Afterall, they expelled France too. If you fail to see that it’s a sovereign decision, you have simply invalidated all your arguments on NL.

You stated that China and Russia is in Africa for exploitation? So what the west did for 400 years is called what? Even up to recently, they would not provide weapons or infrastructures unless you adopt gay rights masked as human rights! You cannot wish away the facts that just 20 years of eastern engagements have translated to thousands of KMs of highways, railways, airports, power infrastructures scattered all over Africa without preconditions and meddling. Simply business! Till today, is the United States not stealing Libyan and Syrian oil?

A case of a bad and jilted ex wife telling her ex husband to be wary of the new wife who is so far without faults. Allow the man be and decide for himself who is a bigger witch.

This is brilliant. Though I'm still not comfortable with the Chinese doings due to the strings and human right record. Say what you want even you will prefer western nations to China and Russia.

Though they can be strict with conditions I think this goes a long way in the future.
Imagine selling weapons to tyrant leader using it to kill his opposers, so much for strictly business! Most of the weapons used by terrorists are Russian made, you even see them with brown new weapons. From AK rifles to machine gun to rpg and even tanks...
This weapon has dominated the black market (this are not food or agriculture products for God sake, they are guns which not everyone should own and all this is due to Russian selling to rogue unstable countries,in restriction you have to give it to the US.

About funding, Nigeria major funding are from the world bank! And the major financers of world Bank are western countries.
WHO has more impact on Nigeria than any loan or infrastructure China has given us till date! It has eradicated disease provide cheap vaccines and all in tunes of millions of dollars annually for the past half century and all this is for free!

You should rather question your leaders on what they are using the loans for! Unlike world Bank, China invest the loans directly on the project which are also overseen by Chinese contractors so no room for looting.
So as they are giving on one hand they are benefiting on the other....

[sup][/sup]

seunny4lif:

Not sure Russia can go to that length.
My own is make Africa leaders looters get their heads together to do something for Africa continent

next millennium at best

BentizilL:

How has Russia been threatening it former Soviet partner??

read read bro.. Russia telling every old nations they doesn’t dance to their tune they they don’t have independence yet.. Kazakhstan for example; Finland; Poland ; ukraine; etc.. they kept showcasing nuclear weapons week in week out.. have you seen any western country using nuclear weapon to threaten their neighbors?

Simeonjoe1:


This is brilliant. Though I'm still not comfortable with the Chinese doings due to the strings and human right record. Say what you want even you will prefer western nations to China and Russia.

Though they can be strict with conditions I think this goes a long way in the future.
Imagine selling weapons to tyrant leader using it to kill his opposers, so much for strictly business! Most of the weapons used by terrorists are Russian made, you even see them with brown new weapons. From AK rifles to machine gun to rpg and even tanks...
This weapon has dominated the black market (this are not food or agriculture products for God sake, they are guns which not everyone should own and all this is due to Russian selling to rogue unstable countries,in restriction you have to give it to the US.

About funding, Nigeria major funding are from the world bank! And the major financers of world Bank are western countries.
WHO has more impact on Nigeria than any loan or infrastructure China has given us till date! It has eradicated disease provide cheap vaccines and all in tunes of millions of dollars annually for the past half century and all this is for free!

You should rather question your leaders on what they are using the loans for! Unlike world Bank, China invest the loans directly on the project which are also overseen by Chinese contractors so no room for looting.
So as they are giving on one hand they are benefiting on the other....

The discourse was initially focused on the sovereign decision of BF n Mali on Wagner.

On the proliferation of weapons among terrorists worldwide, it would interest you to know that most of the weapons being funneled currently into Ukraine are being auctioned as we speak on the dark web.

African governments has since established that all the weapons used by ISIS and Boko Haram to destabilize Africa comes from Libya, Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. Who destabilized these places?

The AK 47, being the primary weapons of insurgency is mass produced worldwide in every country with a defense industry despite being of Russian origin. All you need to produce an AK is a Russian license. DICON in kaduna produces AK 47 as well. Even the US produces AK 47.

China has no business in what goes on where. It’s business is simply just business. China has the largest economy by PPP and second largest economy by GDP. It’s the manufacturing capital of the world and seeks to keep it so. 90% of the world, the US inclusive has China as its biggest trading partner! So what’s the fuss? Africa unlike the developed world needs infrastructure to facilitate this trade. And trade facilitation is what is in it for China. The belt and Silk Road(most ambitious infrastructures projects) transcends across continents.

Would you have china not tie the loans directly to projects so that our corrupt thieving African governments can loot it? All Buhari’s landmark projects were made possible via Chinese loans and not the world bank, and it will benefit their trade on the long run. For China; it’s simply shrewd business. The loans secured from western hemispheres are simply looted. Where is the $12b spent by OBJ admin on power? In private pockets right?

NB; I am not pro Russian or western. To me only a fool supports bloodletting no matter who is involved or the theater of operations. The UN has failed in its mandate for which it was established after the world wars. The world needs a reset. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Simeonjoe1:


This is brilliant. Though I'm still not comfortable with the Chinese doings due to the strings and human right record. Say what you want even you will prefer western nations to China and Russia.

Though they can be strict with conditions I think this goes a long way in the future.
Imagine selling weapons to tyrant leader using it to kill his opposers, so much for strictly business! Most of the weapons used by terrorists are Russian made, you even see them with brown new weapons. From AK rifles to machine gun to rpg and even tanks...
This weapon has dominated the black market (this are not food or agriculture products for God sake, they are guns which not everyone should own and all this is due to Russian selling to rogue unstable countries,in restriction you have to give it to the US.

About funding, Nigeria major funding are from the world bank! And the major financers of world Bank are western countries.
WHO has more impact on Nigeria than any loan or infrastructure China has given us till date! It has eradicated disease provide cheap vaccines and all in tunes of millions of dollars annually for the past half century and all this is for free!

You should rather question your leaders on what they are using the loans for! Unlike world Bank, China invest the loans directly on the project which are also overseen by Chinese contractors so no room for looting.
So as they are giving on one hand they are benefiting on the other....

It is hard to control the flow of light weapon especially guns. The drug dealers and gang member in South America (Columbia, Brazil e.t.c) and North America (Mexico, Jamaica e.t.c) use the US made guns. So it not only AK-47 criminals are using to commit crime.