Moscow’s foreign policy has zeroed in on Africa in recent years. The shift is partially due to commercial interests, including access to resources like gold, uranium, and bauxite. But it’s also political: having broken ties with the West, Russia is rapidly trying to build up a sphere of influence. Kremlin officials frequently accuse the West of neocolonialism, yet their approach in Africa is full of its own patterns of exploitation and control. Meduza explores how Russia has managed to ramp up its influence in Africa since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.