The Central African Republican has become another playground for the war of influence between Paris and Moscow. The latest episode to date: the alleged infiltration of a French defence subcontractor by Russian intelligence.
The information did not travel beyond the very closed circles of the French Ministry of Defence and NATO. At the end of November, Global Technologies – one of France’s leading companies in the installation of telecom networks in high-risk zones – had its authorisation withdrawn by the French authorities.
This company – managed by Jean-Paul Steinitz and a subcontractor of the French group Thalès – supplied encrypted communication networks to French and NATO troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Sahel. However, its contract – which was under renegotiation with Thalès in October – was not renewed.
According to our information, the answer to why Global Technologies’ authorisation was withdrawn can be found in Bangui. Steinitz has in fact developed a business network there and recently signed a contract with the CAR to establish a local telecommunications network there.
A mysterious Russian father-in-law
The 72-year-old businessman put the Central African presidency in touch with an executive from Alrosa, a major Russian diamond company. A gemologist who is none other than his current (and recent) father-in-law. It was the discovery of this family connection to a Russian engineer that alerted the French intelligence community.
Paris did not appreciate seeing one of its subcontractors play into the hands of the Russian diamond giant. Alrosa had also signed a contract with Bangui in December, during a Central African mission to Moscow led by Jean-Claude Rameaux Bireau, the economic minister counsellor, and Pascal Bida Koyagbélé, the minister delegate in charge of Major Works and Strategic Investments.
Suspecting Moscow of having succeeded in placing an intelligence agent within a company under contract with its army, the French Defence and Thales then decided to put an end to all collaboration with the latter, despite Steinitz’s protests of good faith. Steinitz, whom we contacted, did not respond to requests for comment.
For its part, Thales did not lose its place within the French and NATO encrypted communications market. Global Technologies has been replaced by other subcontractors and the group has just signed a contract with NATO to build its “military cloud.”
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