(Moscow) Evguéni Prigojine, a businessman close to the Kremlin and founder of the paramilitary group Wagner, announced his support for Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the new strongman of Burkina Faso, after a second coup in eight months in this country.
Posted at 11:32
“I salute and support Captain Ibrahim Traoré,” Mr Prigojine said in a social media post from his company Concord.
Ibrahim Traoré and his men “did what was necessary and they did it only for the good of their people”, he enthused.
PHOTO ALEXEY DRUZHININ, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Yevgeny Prigozhin (right) and Vladimir Putin
“That is why I warmly congratulate and salute Captain Ibrahim Traoré, a truly courageous son […] of his homeland,” Mr. Prigojine stressed.
At the end of September, Yevgeni Prigojine admitted having founded the paramilitary group Wagner in 2014, present in many conflicts in the world, describing it as a “pillar” of the defense of Russian interests.
Wagner, whose presence has been documented for eight years in Ukraine, Syria, Libya, the Central African Republic, or even Mali, is perceived by his detractors as Vladimir Putin’s shadow army, promoting Russian interests in providing combatants, but also military instructors and advisers.
The Kremlin has always denied having links with paramilitary groups.