Why Russia’s Africa propaganda warrior was despatched house from Chad

Dodging bullets, ducking explosions, safeguarding state secrets and techniques.

Bombastic propaganda movies current the shadowy Russian political operative Maxim Shugalei as a heroic determine – who will apparently cease at nothing in his quest to advertise the nation overseas.

Whereas his escapades have little doubt been exaggerated, in actual life he has performed a big position within the enlargement of Russia’s affect in elements of Africa, working intently with the Wagner Group of Russian mercenaries.

Nonetheless, this would-be iron man just lately suffered a set-back when he was arrested within the central African nation of Chad.

He, together with fellow Russian operatives Samer Sueifan and E Tsaryov, had been detained in September on unexplained fees, earlier than being freed and despatched house earlier this month, in keeping with the Russian embassy.

Shugalei tends to explain himself as a “sociologist” however in actuality, say analysts, he’s a spin physician and an agent of Russian affect identified for his work on the African continent.

He has been underneath EU sanctions since 2023 for overseeing disinformation campaigns to advertise the Wagner Group in a number of African nations, and can also be the topic of Ukrainian sanctions.

Since at the least 2010, Shugalei was affiliated with the late Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner boss and a detailed affiliate of President Vladimir Putin.

Whereas Shugalei used to disclaim these ties – as was customary in Prigozhin’s circles – he nonetheless first got here to media consideration for his work and subsequent arrest in Libya on fees of spying and meddling in elections on behalf of the Wagner boss.

Prigozhin had tasked Shugalei with gathering data and getting ready a technique to help Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former chief Muammar Gaddafi.

When Shugalei returned to Russia, Prigozhin revealed that he had given him 18m rubles ($173,000; £138,000) – 1m rubles for every month he had spent in captivity.

Shugalei’s escapades in Libya fashioned the premise for a trilogy of motion TV movies, seemingly sponsored by Prigozhin. They had been designed to, amongst different issues, glorify the regime of then-Wagner ally Khalifa Haftar in japanese Libya and whitewash Russia’s actions in Africa.

The position of Shugalei was performed by the actor Kirill Polukhin, and the movies present him as “virtually a James Bond determine, or Mission Not possible kind”, says Ladd Serwat, an Africa Regional Specialist on the Armed Battle Location and Occasion Information venture (Acled).

“We’re proven this macho, robust one who is unwilling to crack underneath stress or give away nationwide secrets and techniques – then could be very succesful as a mercenary or impartial navy operator.”

A modest-sized on-line fan web page falsely claims that “Shugalei” has even grow to be an Arabic phrase for “man of iron who can’t be damaged”.

However as a key participant within the enlargement of Russia’s affect in Africa in recent times, he has additionally been concerned in some extraordinary actions in actual life.

In 2018, a BBC investigation discovered that he was one among a number of Russian operatives who had been caught providing suitcases full of money to presidential candidates in Madagascar.

Earlier than his actions overseas, the one public episode of Shugalei’s profession as a political guide dates again to the 2002 elections for the St Petersburg parliament.

On the time, Shugalei served as a consultant for one of many candidates and famously ate a number of paperwork throughout an electoral fee assembly to forestall them from being submitted to court docket.

Beneath Prigozhin, Shugalei’s official place was head of the Basis for the Safety of Nationwide Values, a pro-Wagner organisation and public relations agency.

Unofficially, he labored in numerous African states to attempt to make sure regimes beneficial to Wagner would come to, and stay in, energy, as a part of Russia’s makes an attempt to realize affect on the continent – particularly on the expense of France.

Because the loss of life of Yevgeny Prigozhin final 12 months, troops serving underneath the Wagner banner in Ukraine and Africa have been absorbed into Russia’s official navy construction.

Nonetheless, Prigozhin’s media empire, which Shugalei was part of, has crumbled.

As somebody who operates within the shadows, it’s arduous to know precisely how a lot affect he wields.

But, in keeping with some, Shugalei could not have misplaced an excessive amount of affect regardless of the loss of life of his mentor.

“He nonetheless appears to have the identical degree of affect, even though the Kremlin appears to have taken over nearly all of Wagner group operations,” says Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst overlaying Francophone Africa for Management Dangers.

He seemingly not denies his ties to Wagner and Prigozhin – his Telegram channel is filled with posts commemorating the late oligarch and his mercenary group, and he even reposts Wagner’s recruitment data.

But, apart from his arrest in Chad and a July journey to Angola which he documented on Telegram, it’s arduous to inform the total scale of his present actions.

Chad has given no official purpose for the arrest of Shugalei and his two associates.

A number of theories abound – some extra believable than others.

Russian state-controlled information channel RT reported that the arrests had been instigated by France, however that is most definitely a fiction designed to save lots of face, Ms Ochieng tells the BBC.

Since at the least Might, Russia has been pushing the narrative that the West’s conventional affect in Chad is waning.

However, though Chad has just lately signed offers with Russia on infrastructure and safety, it nonetheless hosts French troops, and retains good relations with the previous colonial energy, not like a number of of its Francophone neighbours which have tilted in direction of Russia.

There is no such thing as a proof of a Russian navy presence within the nation.

In actual fact, some argue that Chadian President Mahamat Déby is expertly taking part in Russia and the West in opposition to one another, to Chad’s benefit.

Russia is striving to realize full dominance over West Africa’s Sahel area, and already has shut ties to 2 of Chad’s neighbours – Niger, and the Central Africa Republic (CAR), the nation the place Russia’s affect is strongest on the continent.

Wagner fighters are stated to have infiltrated Chad from the CAR and clashed with the native military, earlier than retreating.

If Russia may deliver Chad into its orbit, that may create an uninterrupted sphere of affect stretching hundreds of miles.

Shugalei had visited Chad twice earlier than, and notably held talks with Déby’s marketing campaign workforce previous to the presidential elections in Might. He was additionally linked to the Russia Home cultural centre within the capital, N’Djamena, which just lately unveiled a brand new headquarters at a ceremony attended by Russian authorities officers.

Final 12 months, US intelligence providers stated that they had found that Wagner allegedly orchestrated a plot to assassinate Déby however failed to hold it out.

Mr Serwat suggests this can be why Shugalei was arrested.

Ms Ochieng says Chad could have been apprehensive about Shugalei’s potential to try to destabilise the nation by spreading disinformation.

Shugalei’s basis has denied that he’s a “Wagner spy”, saying Shugalei “doesn’t know something particularly about Wagner Group’s actions in Africa and solely is aware of basic particulars about what it did beforehand”.

Russian-backed social media content material, TV stations and information websites are being deployed to unfold a pro-Russian agenda and disinformation, particularly in Africa, in keeping with analysts.

Examples embody Afrique Media TV which broadcasts from Cameroon as far afield as CAR, Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger – and can also be on YouTube the place it has hundreds of followers, and enjoys a big Fb following.

Shugalei himself teases his presence in numerous African nations, typically sharing quick, low-budget, vlog-style Telegram movies that clarify his love of showmanship.

Of the video content material aimed toward Africans, many tackle a fable-like look – one, known as LionBear – reveals a bear (which symbolises Russia) working throughout the globe to defend a lion (his Central African Republic good friend) from the malign affect of hyenas.

“I do not assume folks essentially are gained over by these movies – folks assume it is humorous, a joke,” says Ms Ochieng.