Russian cargo vessels have transported tanks, armored vehicles and rocket launchers to African ports that serve as gateways for Moscow’s forces across the continent, according to a new investigation. The findings also point to a possible additional supply route through the Republic of Congo.

C4ADS, a Washington organization that tracks illicit networks globally, collected data covering the past three years. Its investigation examined a sample of 12 vessels with operational ties to Russian military shipments between 2023 and 2026.

Analysts drew from publicly available information, including AIS ship transponder data, satellite imagery, pictures taken on the ground and local reporting. They used those sources to trace vessels moving between Russian ports and destinations in Africa.

The ports of Conakry in Guinea, Tobruk in Libya and Lomé in Togo emerged as particularly important logistics points likely supporting Russia’s Africa Corps troops. The Corps operates under Russia’s Defense Ministry and developed from the former Wagner Group.

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Wagner operated throughout Africa and elsewhere in support of the Kremlin’s great power politics. Mali is a major Africa Corps location and may have been the final destination for many weapons included in the shipments, according to C4ADS researchers.

Analysts tracked five known military transport vessels traveling from Russian Baltic and Arctic ports to Conakry between December 2024 and March 2026. Military convoys then continued inland from Guinea toward Mali.

The Adler and Siyanie Severa were among the vessels that arrived in Conakry in January 2025. Within days, footage showed roughly 100 military vehicles reaching Bamako, including Spartak MRAP armored vehicles and T-72 heavy tanks.

Other vessels followed similar routes at later dates. The Baltic Leader and Patria reached Conakry in May 2025, after which additional MRAPs appeared in the region.

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Those two vessels traveled with the Siyanie Severa, which moved beyond Conakry to Bata in Equatorial Guinea and Lagos in Nigeria. Some Russian cargo ships also received naval escorts during part or all of their journeys.

The Sabetta reached Conakry in March 2026 after a Russian warship escorted it through the English Channel. C4ADS assessed that the vessel likely delivered military equipment, including Tigr infantry mobility vehicles, during that voyage.

Researchers also identified Pointe-Noire in the Republic of Congo as a port that may have become another logistics hub for Russian military operations in Africa. Three ships under U.S. sanctions and designed specifically to transport vehicles traveled there from the Black Sea and St. Petersburg areas between 2023 and 2026.

Two of those vessels also visited West African ports more firmly connected to Russian weapons shipments during the same period. C4ADS cautioned that additional work would be needed to determine conclusively what the ships transported to Pointe-Noire.

Libya appeared repeatedly as a destination, with Russia’s Africa Corps reportedly heavily involved in the country’s eastern region. That area is controlled by General Haftar’s Libyan National Army.

“Like shipments to West Africa, deliveries to Libya follow a recurring pattern: departure from Baltiysk Naval Base in Kaliningrad, a naval escort indicating high-value cargo, and frequent prolonged AIS signal gaps in the Mediterranean,” C4ADS said. Such signal gaps are also frequently used by Russia’s shadow fleet of tankers as a tracking obfuscation method.

Togo has also become a significant waypoint for Russian supply routes into the Sahel, analysts assessed. That development followed a 2025 military cooperation agreement between Moscow and Lomé, with materiel moving toward Mali through Togo and Burkina Faso.

C4ADS said the cargo ship Mikhail Britnev likely carried military vehicles and equipment to Lomé in June and July 2026. Malian state television later showed 29 armored vehicles in Bamako, which reporters said had traveled from Lomé.

The maritime routes supplement an air logistics network previously investigated by Defense News. That network involved Russian military cargo aircraft operating through Algeria and continuing to other African destinations.

Of the 12 vessels tracked by C4ADS, 10 are under U.S. sanctions. Six are covered directly or through their owners by British sanctions, while five are covered by European Union sanctions.

The investigation and an accompanying interactive map are scheduled for public release on Nov. 10. Its findings trace a broad maritime network connecting Russian ports with logistics points in West Africa, Libya and potentially the Republic of Congo.

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