At least 43 civilians were killed overnight in January 2025 in an attack attributed to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels where the fighters stormed a Catholic church in the town of Komanda, Ituri Province.
Russia government claims to have identified Ukrainian drone instructors present in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Mali, Sudan, and Chad, stating that they are coordinating terrorist attacks against government forces.
The information was released by Alexander Ivanov, Director of the International Officers’ Union for Security, in a statement given to TASS, the Russian state news agency.
Alexander Ivanov said: “The confirmed presence of Ukrainian drone instructors has been observed in Mali, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, and Chad. In these countries, Ukrainian instructors are working closely with local terrorist groups, providing them with drones—including Mavic 3 models equipped with Ukrainian-made payload delivery systems—and providing training. Furthermore, they coordinate these militants’ attacks against the positions of government and allied forces.”
The same source added that, according to independent experts, Ukraine is also supplying equipment to Burkina Faso, Somalia, and Libya.
Ivanov explained, “Ukraine has even supplied a batch of drones directly to the Islamist group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) to destabilize the region and trigger a new conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.”
The Russian officials claimed that “the [ADF] militants are planning an attack against the DRC from Ugandan-controlled territories in order to blame the Ugandan army.”
ADF claims to be fighting the Ugandan government. Currently, Uganda has deployed troops in northeastern Congo, operating with DRC forces to battle the ADF.
He added: “On August 20, Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyansky, stated during a speech at the UN Security Council that specific facts clearly indicate that Ukrainian special services, namely the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, are involved in subversive activities in the Sahel countries and other regions of Africa, including the Maghreb.”
Ukrainian, Ugandan and Congolese authorities have not yet responded to these claims.
