Russia is Taking Partnership With African Countries to Strategic Level – Lavrov

Russia is Taking Partnership With African Countries to Strategic Level – Lavrov

Moscow is taking its partnership with African countries to a truly strategic level, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated during a press conference on Thursday.

“With African countries, you know, we are taking our partnership to a truly strategic level. This was… confirmed at the second Russia-Africa Summit, which took place in St. Petersburg in July last year,” Lavrov said.

The Second Russia-Africa Summit was held in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 27–28, 2023. Leaders and senior officials from both Russia and Africa, along with representatives from business, non-governmental organizations, and academia, convened at the event to discuss the opportunities for strengthening cooperation between Russia and the continent.
Official representative of the president of South Africa, Vincent Magwenya, emphasized that the summit was a “clear call” for “substantive, mutually beneficial and effective cooperation between Russia and the countries of the African continent.”

Lavrov pointed out that the last fall interparliamentary conference between Russia and Latin America was an important stage in the development of relationship between Russia and the continent, noting that “both Africa and Latin America are, like the Asian countries […], emerging as independent centers of the multipolar world.”
Furthermore, the minister revealed that about 30 countries are interested in rapprochement with BRICS, adding that the association has a very bright future.

“More than 20, somewhere even closer to 30 countries are interested in rapprochement with BRICS, we see a very bright future for this association with a global composition of participants,” Lavrov told the press conference.