ISW: Russia may withdraw some occupiers from Ukraine due to Wagnerites' destruction in Mali.

The Institute for the Study of War reported that after the losses of the Wagner Group in Mali, the Kremlin would be forced to replace the militants in Africa with servicemen from the Russian Ministry of Defense's African Corps. Part of the corps had already been transferred to the Kharkiv region to support the occupiers.

Analysts note that some Russian military bloggers claim that the Russian Ministry of Defense is nervous about the Wagner Group's losses and suggest that the Russian military leadership will use this incident to stop deploying Wagner militants in the Sahel and completely replace them with units of the African Corps.

Several Russian bloggers refer to an unidentified source in Putin's administration, which claims that the African Corps will replace Wagner troops throughout the "Sahel triad" (Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger).

However, the Institute suggests that the African Corps likely lacks the capabilities for a proper replacement of the Wagner Group, especially in Mali, due to its deployment in Ukraine. Part of the corps' fighters was involved in offensive actions in the northern Kharkiv region.

The Institute's report notes that a large-scale replacement of Wagner after the losses incurred during the latest ambush may lead to some African Corps fighters being redeployed to Mali away from the front line in Ukraine. The Russian military command likely does not consider a complete replacement of Wagner in Mali or other parts of the Sahel as a priority.

On July 27, Tuareg rebels from the CSP-PSD movement published photos and videos of a destroyed Wagner militant column in Mali. The battle took place in the city of Tinzaouaten near the Mali-Algeria border on July 25-26. At least 20 Wagner militants were killed, and the survivors were captured.

Source: RBC-Ukraine