Dozens of African officials and business leaders will gather in Sochi, Russia for a two-day summit intended to boost relations between the Russian Federation and all 54 African nations.
The summit will be co-chaired by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. In Sochi, African heads of state, ministers and business leaders from more than half the continent’s countries will join panels to explore potential collaborations with Russian agencies and businesses.
The 2-day summit is in with the Russian agenda to increase ties with Africa by kickstarting and advancing economic, security and political partnerships. Also, Russia may also hope to fill a perceived void left by the United States, whose presence in Africa appears to be waning.
Moscow has taken a hands-on approach, forging security and economic alliances from the Central African Republic to Eritrea. Russia is also actively advising Mozambique as the south African nation struggles with an ISIS-affiliated insurgency.
Russia’s entry into Africa has been viewed as a welcome interruption from the competitive nature between China and the US in the ‘scramble for Africa’. It also comes to benefit African countries, especially in defense cooperation as a large majority of the countries tussle with armed groups and insurgencies.
