Russia needs to build direct relations with partners from Africa. Sergey Glazyev, Minister for Integration and Macroeconomics of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), stated this on June 16 on the sidelines of the 25th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
“Africa is one of the important promising areas. We should develop cooperation not only with the African Union, but also with individual countries. It is necessary to strengthen partnership in order to bring our economies closer together,” he said, recalling the experience of cooperation with Africa since the Soviet era.
According to him, Russia and Africa are facing Western aggression and are “on the same side” in the hybrid war launched by Western countries. He stressed that the two countries have common problems and interests.
Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with the President of the African Union, the leader of Senegal Macky Sall on June 3, said that Russia would develop relations with the states of the continent. He stressed that Russia has always been on the side of Africa, supporting it in the fight against colonialism. In addition, the head of state noted an increase in trade turnover by more than 34% in the first months of 2022.
Prior to that, on May 21, Oleg Ozerov, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said that the Russian side considers it necessary to strengthen the composition of African embassies.
