A "win" for Dagalo's Rapid Support Force in the current fighting in Sudan could benefit Wagner - the "mining" mercenaries – to the disadvantage of other African nations – and add to Europe's refugee problems, writes Fidel Amakye Owusu.

Just when some West African states are uncomfortable with the presence of Wagner forces in Mali and most likely, Burkina Faso, the group has become a "major" player in the current crisis. It's also active in some Sudan's neighbouring states such as the Central African Republic and Libya.

Dr Robert Crowcroft, Research Associate, UK Defence Forum

The last two years have seen the return of piracy, usually off the coast of Africa, to the minds of the public as a significant international issue. Indeed piracy is now a genuine problem for the nations and corporations that rely on oceanic trade. While only a small number of vessels will ever be hijacked or seized by pirates, bear in mind that 95% of global trade is carried by sea. This means that there is plenty of scope for piracy, whether in the waters off Africa, in South Asia, or Latin America. At the moment, Somali pirates are holding about twenty EU-registered vessels for ransom. The American government has singled out Somali pirates as the biggest pirate problem, responsible for around half of all incidents worldwide in 2010.

And the ongoing multinational effort to police the lawless seas off the Horn of Africa is expensive – unsustainably so.

Moreover, the blunt truth is that there are higher priority operations that naval forces could be attending to. Between five and ten US warships are typically tasked with dealing with the issue at any one time, and there are other nations involved as well. India, for instance, last week asked African nations to do more to tackle piracy. Maintaining forces at sea on long-term operations is a costly business.