Maxim Shugalei: Why Russia’s Africa propaganda warrior was sent home from Chad

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

Bombastic propaganda films 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.

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

However, this would-be iron man 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, based on 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 recognized for his work on the African continent.

He has been beneath 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 a minimum of 2010, Shugalei was affiliated with the late Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner boss and an in depth affiliate of President Vladimir Putin.

While Shugalei used to disclaim these ties – as was customary in Prigozhin’s circles – he however 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 making ready a method to assist Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of former leader 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 idea 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 jap 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 “almost a James Bond figure, or Mission Impossible type”, says Ladd Serwat, an Africa Regional Specialist on the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data challenge (Acled).

“We are shown this macho, tough person who is unwilling to crack under pressure or give away national secrets – then is very capable as a mercenary or independent military operator.”

A modest-sized on-line fan web page falsely claims that “Shugalei” has even turn out to be an Arabic phrase for “man of iron who cannot be broken”.

But as a key participant within the growth 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 in all a number of Russian operatives who had been caught offering suitcases full of cash to presidential candidates in Madagascar.

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

At 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 stop them from being submitted to court docket.

Under Prigozhin, Shugalei’s official place was head of the Foundation for the Protection of National 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 achieve affect on the continent – particularly on the expense of France.

Since the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin last year, troops serving beneath the Wagner banner in Ukraine and Africa have been absorbed into Russia’s official army construction.

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

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

Yet, based on some, Shugalei might not have misplaced an excessive amount of affect regardless of the dying of his mentor.

“He still seems to have the same level of influence, despite the fact that the Kremlin seems to have taken over the majority of Wagner group operations,” says Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst protecting Francophone Africa for Control Risks.

He seemingly now 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.

Yet, except for his arrest in Chad and a July journey to Angola which he documented on Telegram, it’s laborious to inform the complete scale of his present actions.

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

Multiple 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 more than likely a fiction designed to save lots of face, Ms Ochieng tells the BBC.

Since a minimum of May, Russia has been pushing the narrative that the West’s conventional affect in Chad is waning.

But, though Chad has 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 isn’t any proof of a Russian army presence within the nation.

In reality, some argue that Chadian President Mahamat Déby is expertly playing Russia and the West against each other, to Chad’s benefit.

Russia is striving to achieve 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 influence is strongest on the continent.

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

If Russia might convey Chad into its orbit, that may create an uninterrupted sphere of affect stretching 1000’s of miles.

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

Last yr, US intelligence providers mentioned they’d 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 might have been fearful about Shugalei’s potential to attempt to destabilise the nation by spreading disinformation.

Shugalei’s foundation has denied that he is a “Wagner spy”, saying Shugalei “does not know anything in particular about Wagner Group’s activities in Africa and only knows general details about what it did previously”.

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

Examples embrace 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 1000’s of followers, and enjoys a big Facebook following.

Shugalei himself teases his presence in numerous African nations, generally sharing brief, 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 buddy) from the malign affect of hyenas.

“I don’t think people necessarily are won over by these videos – people think it’s funny, a joke,” says Ms Ochieng.