Putin pledges to boost Russia Africa ties, blasts rival powers for ‘divide and conquer’ approach
- Russian president is hosting heads of state from Africa in his aim to counter efforts by US and its allies to isolate Moscow over Ukraine
- Kremlin has military agreements with more than 40 African countries, supplying them with weapons and equipment, Putin said
President Vladimir Putin told African leaders he is committed to expanding Russia’s role on the continent as he hit out at rival powers for what he said were attempts to impose their rules.
“Russia’s focus on Africa is steadily increasing, which is demonstrated by our plans to expand our diplomatic presence in the continent,” Putin said on Friday on the second day of the Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg, the day General Abdourahamane Tchiani was announced as Niger’s leader after a military coup there.
“The main thing that unites Russia and Africa is their efforts to fight for true sovereignty – the era of hegemony of one or of a group of states is fading into the past,” Putin said.
He is hosting 17 heads of state along with lower-level officials from other African countries as the Kremlin seeks to counter efforts by the US and its allies to isolate Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Still, the turnout in Russia is far lower than the first summit in 2019 when 43 heads of state attended. The Kremlin has blamed the low attendance on “unprecedented pressure” from the US and its allies.
The discussions have been dominated by the impact of Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea grain deal that has fuelled concerns in Africa over rising global food prices.