Internal conflict continues in Central African Republic

Since December 2012, the Central African Republic (CAR) has been embroiled in a civil war. In March 2013, the 5th coup in CAR's history took place. The coup, led by a mostly Muslim rebel group, displaced then President Francois Bozize. 

Since 2017, Russia has played an increasingly pivotal role as a foreign partner for the CAR's government. Russia has been aligned with the President of CAR Faustin-Archange Touadera. In addition to assisting President Touadera's government, Russia's involvement with CAR serves as a potential link for expanded economic, military, and political influence in Central Africa. Russia seeks to expand its influence in other surrounding countries such as: Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and the Republic of Congo. 

In early 2018, Russia donated military equipment to the Central African Republic. Russia has argued for reducing sanctions against CAR's diamond industry imposed by the United Nations. A peace agreement was signed in February 2019 between the government of CAR and armed rebel groups. Despite the peace agreement, armed groups maintain control of several parts of the country. The CAR government controls about 1/5 of the country. CAR has an abundance of natural resources including: diamonds, hydropower, gold, oil, timber, and uranium. CAR gained independence from France in 1960.

Sources:

https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/central-africa/central-african-republic/russias-influence-central-african-republic

https://rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/russias-strategy-central-african-republic

Central African Republic - The World Factbook (cia.gov)

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