MPs accuse UK government of enabling Wagner Group's African expansion – The Guardian

The Guardian writes about it. 

The committee urges the government to ban the Wagner group in the UK and take more decisive actions to prevent it from using London as a financial hub. So far, the UK has imposed sanctions on only half the number of Wagner associates as the US and the EU.

Wagner's activities have extended beyond Russia, with evidence showing involvement in conflicts in Libya, Syria, Sudan, Central African Republic (CAR), Mozambique, and Mali, among others.

“Wagner is involved in promoting the interests of the political elite of Russia outside the countries of the former Soviet Union and the implementation of large-scale business projects under intergovernmental agreements. No other Russian paramilitary structure operates in this way. Wagner has a complete monopoly in this field,” said an anonymous witness who had defected from the group.

The report highlights the government's delayed response to countering Wagner, taking six weeks to identify the lead department responsible. The lack of understanding and strategic action has allowed the Wagner network to expand unchecked.

The committee recommends considering sanctions against national governments that collaborate with Wagner to breach UN sanctions or fail to protect their populations from its actions, the article says. 

The UK's decision to withdraw troops from Mali without adequate consultation with the Foreign Office was also criticized in the report.

In response to these findings, the committee calls for a more comprehensive approach to sanctions, ensuring affiliated entities are targeted effectively. The failure to do so raises concerns that Wagner-linked entities might still be benefitting from the UK's financial markets without accountability.

“This makes it possible, if not probable, that Wagner-linked entities are continuing to benefit from access to the UK’s financial markets. The lack of certainty about this denotes a scandalous failure to exercise due diligence,” the committee's report concluded.

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