Kremlin’s puppets have been involved in a long list of crimes

Russia has deployed the Wagner Group in military operations across at least half a dozen African nations

Siegle [the director of research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies] said Russia is also waging an ideological battle, using Wagner as a “coercive tool” to undermine Western ideas of democracy and turn countries towards Moscow. Putin wants to challenge the international democratic order “because Russia can’t compete very well in that order”, Siegle said.

“If democracy is held up as the ultimate aspirational governance model, then that is constraining for Russia,” Siegle said.