# Central African Republic The **Central African Republic** (CAR) is the country where the [[Wagner Group]] model was perfected and where it has outlived its founder. Since about 2018 Russian fighters have guarded President [[Faustin-Archange Touadéra]], trained his army and fought his rebels, and Prigozhin-linked companies have been paid in gold and diamond concessions. Touadéra used that protection to rewrite the constitution and win a third term. In 2026 CAR was the last place in Africa where the Wagner brand still operated, with Moscow pressing to replace it with the state-run [[Africa Corps]]. > [!note] Canonical country record > This page owns the bare name **Central African Republic**. The Russian force is at [[Wagner Group]] and [[Africa Corps]]; the companies are at [[Lobaye Invest]] and [[M Invest]]. ## The client president | Date | Event | |---|---| | Mar 2013 | Séléka rebels seize Bangui; a sectarian civil war follows | | Apr 2014 | UN peacekeeping mission MINUSCA created | | Mar 30, 2016 | Touadéra inaugurated | | Late 2017–2018 | Russia restores ties after a 40-year gap; Wagner arrives | | Feb 2019 | Peace deal with 14 armed groups, six of which later withdraw | | Jul 2023 | Referendum abolishes presidential term limits and lengthens terms from five to seven years; Wagner sends hundreds of fighters to Bangui beforehand | | Dec 28, 2025 | Touadéra re-elected with 77.9% (certified) amid an opposition boycott and fraud allegations | | Mar 30, 2026 | Sworn in for a seven-year third term | ## What Russia was paid | Asset | Holder | Status | |---|---|---| | Gold and diamond exploration rights | [[Lobaye Invest]], founded Oct 2017 by Prigozhin employee Dmitry Sytyi | US sanctions Sep 2020; EU Feb 2023 | | Ndassima gold mine | [[Midas Ressources]] | US sanctions Jun 2023; worth an estimated $100 million a year with no declared output, smuggled via Somalia to Dubai (GI-TOC) | | Diamond trading | [[Diamville]] | EU Feb 2023, US Jun 2023 | | Security contracts | Sewa Security Services; Officers' Union for International Security | US sanctions Jan 2023 | | Mining and logistics | Mining Industries; Logistique Economique Etrangere | US sanctions May 30, 2024 | The Sentry's 2023 report *Architects of Terror* accuses Wagner, Touadéra and his inner circle of mass killing, torture and rape as instruments of control. ## The handover that hasn't finished Since August 2025 Moscow has pushed Bangui to swap Wagner for [[Africa Corps]] — and to pay for it in cash rather than in mining concessions. AFP reported in December 2025 that Touadéra preferred Wagner partly for that reason. After Touadéra met [[Vladimir Putin]] in March 2026, DW reported that Africa Corps appeared set to take over in Bangui; a local report that Wagner demanded about $1.6 billion to leave was denied by the presidency. As of the latest reporting the transfer was described as pending, not complete. A single report in early September 2026 (Africa Intelligence, via PlaneteAfrique) described a compromise: networks tied to Wagner executive Dmitry Sytyi keep their security contracts and businesses, while Africa Corps keeps a limited force in Bangui. Moscow's reported price for Africa Corps is $4–15 million a month. Neither government has announced an agreement. ## The UN and the US MINUSCA's mandate was renewed for a year in November 2025 under a severe funding crisis. A US budget-rescission package described the mission as "fully aligned with Russia." CAR is not on the Trump administration's travel-ban lists. ## See Also - [[Faustin-Archange Touadéra]] · [[Wagner Group]] · [[Africa Corps]] · [[Lobaye Invest]] · [[M Invest]] - [[Security-for-Minerals]] · [[Gold]] · [[Conflict Minerals Hub]] · [[Africa]] · [[Countries Hub]]