Vladimir Putin. Photo: Gavriil Grigorov / AP
Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised African countries “full support” from Moscow during the Russia-Africa conference held in Sochi on Sunday. Addressing the participants of the event, his message was read out by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, The Moscow Time reported.
“Our country will continue to provide full support to our African friends in various areas,” Putin said, stressing the importance of developing such areas as sustainable development, the fight against terrorism and extremism, epidemics, addressing food security, and the consequences of natural disasters.
The conference, which took place on the Black Sea coast on Saturday and Sunday, followed two previous Russia-Africa summits held in 2019 in Sochi and in 2023 in St Petersburg. According to Lavrov, thanks to the “pace set” by these summits, relations between Russia and African countries are strengthening every year.
“We see progress in all areas of cooperation,” he added, expressing satisfaction with the development of bilateral ties.
This meeting once again underscores the Kremlin’s desire to promote the idea of a “multipolar world” as a response to the dispute with the West. It is this concept that Russia has been emphasising since the introduction of international sanctions and isolation policies following the start of its aggression against Ukraine in February 2022.
In particular, the conference takes place after the BRICS summit in October 2023 in Kazan, where Putin tried to demonstrate the failure of the Western countries’ policy of isolating Russia.
For several years now, Russia has been actively developing its presence in Africa, using rhetoric against “neocolonialism” and in favour of a “fairer world order”, which resonates with a number of African states.
