Intent on charming those who run resource-rich Africa, President Putin is presiding over a summit of leaders from the continent at St. Petersburg. Even the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, surfaced there Thursday, making a splash for the first time since his ill-fated march on Moscow.  

Attendance at the summit, hailed by Moscow mouthpieces as a major event in Rus-African relations, is less robust than a similar gathering in 2019, when nearly 40 African heads of state came calling. As of Thursday only 17 were expected at the two-day conference, which had been scheduled to last four days before being cut short. 

Even while Mr. Putin is attempting to convince African leaders that Russia remains their benefactor and that it can help them hold on to power, there was a vivid reminder of the precarious nature of the continent’s politics: The elected president of Niger,   Mohamed Bazoum, was overthrown Wednesday in a military coup, and was placed under house arrest.

A mob gathered in front of the presidential palace in support of the generals. “The crowd played pro-army music,” Reuters reported. “Some waved Russian flags and chanted anti-French slogans, echoing a growing wave of resentment towards former colonial power France and its influence in the Sahel region.” 

“If the pro-Russia coup in Niger is a success, it is EXTREMELY serious for Europe,” a journalist who follows Africa closely, Daniel Poubert, tweeted in a long thread describing France’s loss of sway over its former colonies. Paris, he claimed, “absolutely did not expect to be ousted from Niger,” from which a third of the uranium France uses to fuel the nuclear plants that dominate its energy market comes.

There was no firm evidence that Russia was behind the coup as part of its involvement in the war-torn Sahel region. The Wagner group’s long-term military presence in the region has helped Moscow impose its will there well before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Mr. Prigozhin was photographed Thursday at a hotel owned by his family. He appeared jovial while shaking hands with the Central African Republic’s chief of protocol, Freddy Mapouka. The current CAR president, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, who attended Mr. Putin’s summit, owes his hold on power to the Wagner group, which has helped train, finance, and organize the country’s military force. 

Mr. Prigozhin has not been seen in public since last month’s coup attempt, after which he reportedly struck a deal that would send him to exile in Belarus. His appearance on the margins of an Africa summit at his hometown of St. Petersburg, in a country not known for forgiving opponents of its strongman, may have served as an indication that the Wagner chief is no longer in Mr. Putin’s crosshairs. 

That appearance could also have been designed to signal to African leaders that just like in CAR, Mali, and elsewhere, Wagner can come to their aid as they battle internal enemies. Wagner’s African activities have helped to extend Russian influence, but they also kept the private army financially afloat. In Mali, for one, oligarchs affiliated with Wagner now control the gold mining industry.

The Department of the Treasury this week imposed new sanctions on Malian officials who facilitated the Russian paramilitaries’ takeover and “contributed to the Wagner Group’s malicious activities.” Thirst for African resources — gold, uranium, rare earths — motivate Wagner’s military activities, and seem to also benefit allies in the Kremlin. 

Mr. Putin nevertheless is presenting his summit as a show of friendship and solidarity. Greeting guests on Thursday, the Russian president immediately addressed their top concern — a shortage of grain-based food staples after Moscow earlier this week abruptly canceled an agreement reached by the United Nations and Turkey to allow Ukraine, the world’s largest grower, to export grains. 

“I have already said that our country can replace Ukrainian grain, both on a commercial basis and as grant aid to the neediest African countries, more so since we expect another record harvest this year,” Mr. Putin said. American officials noted that much of that “record harvest” was conducted in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine. 

Mr. Putin’s African charm offensive comes as Europe, much of Asia, and America shun him. Earlier this year he was forced to cancel a previously planned August trip to South Africa, as Pretoria threatened to take action on an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him on allegations of committing war crimes in Ukraine. 

South Africa’s dilemma could explain the decision of some countries to send to St. Petersburg low-level delegates, rather than heads of state. Mr. Putin may rule Russia’s most beautiful city, but he is yet to emerge from his global isolation.