The rapid and humiliating defeat of poorly trained and disorganized Romanian mercenaries in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last January revealed more than just incompetence in security operations (e.g. North Koreans deployed into Ukraine). It has pulled the covers back on a gambit where Russia and China tried to exploit proxy conflicts to extract critical minerals.

The M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, captured Goma on January 28, 2025. In doing so they defeated the so-called “Romeo” contractors “hired” (e.g. funded by Russian oligarchs and Chinese investors) through the DRC government. The defeat was the coup d’grace to a strategy employed by competing powers seeking control of the region’s cobalt, coltan, and gold deposits.

Russia and China have pursued mineral interests in Africa through a calculated approach that has become increasingly agressive: exploit government weakness, offer security assistance through proxies, and secure mining rights in exchange. The Romanian contractors’ defeat was a flop, exposing the strategy in eastern DRC, temporarily giving Western-aligned Rwanda an advantage through their M23 proxies.

What makes this particularly revealing is how the “Romeos” operation mirrored Russian tactics seen elsewhere in the world. The disorganized deployment of poorly trained personnel given an AK47 and flak vest but nothing else — “supermarket guards” according to The Guardian’s investigation — resembles the approach used by Russian PMCs in Mali and the Central African Republic for example. The idea is to deploy men desperate for rapid enrichment (yet low chances of survival) as a “force” to maintain strategic resource access while avoiding direct accountability.

Congolese leaders have a history of employing white mercenaries. They led infamous campaigns against rebels in the turbulent years after independence from Belgium in 1960. Former Congolese dictator Mobutu Sese Seko also hired ex-Yugoslav mercenaries as his regime collapsed in the 1990s. In late 2022, with the M23 surrounding Goma, the DRC government hired two private-military firms. One, named Agemira, was made up of about 40 former French security personnel who provided intelligence and logistical support to the Congolese army.

In case you’re wondering why the UK lost its appeal to the Congo and France is showing up instead, it’s both historic and regional…

As you maybe can see the DRC (formerly Zaire) has a rather toxic past relationship with both Belgium and France. While Belgium was the primary colonial power, of absolutely the worst violent racism imaginable, France has kept significant influence in the region. Mobutu’s 1965 coup to keep European mercenaries in control of the country was supported by Belgium, as well as the United States, in the context of Cold War geopolitics that mandated western rights to Congo’s vast mineral resources. This produced a 32-year authoritarian regime characterized by horrific human rights abuses and economic exploitation. Rwanda’s interventions in Congo began to unfold during the First and Second Congo Wars (1996-2003), driven by security concerns related to French meddling and Hutu militias along the border.

The complex history involves multiple foreign actors pursuing strategic and economic interests in the region at the expense of Congolese sovereignty and development.

China, on that note, has traditionally focused on infrastructure investments to secure mining rights. But as competition intensifies for battery metals and rare earth elements essential to green technology, their interests increasingly align with Russia’s more aggressive militarized approach, let alone French history of extreme mercenary meddling. A crossover with Chinese passive methods becomes apparent when the DRC claims it has sourced a “fund” for security contractors.

Confused? Don’t worry, here’s a handy chart I made of the latest winners (green) and losers (red).

The collapse of Goma’s defenses give insight into the paper-thin proxy strategy and why African nations are right to pounce on the weakened and incompetent Russian leadership. When mercenaries fled to UN compounds abandoning equipment and weapons, they demonstrated that hired guns, especially Russian-backed conscripts desperate for their next meal, rarely provide sustainable security solutions in complex conflicts.

For local populations, the real tragedy continues: violent competition for mineral resources that power smartphones and electric vehicles worldwide, while development and stability remain elusive. As Rwanda and M23 now control key mineral areas, Russia and China appear severely weakened in their approach in this critical region, likely seeking different arrangements to corrupt whoever controls the mines.