In spite of the offensive in Ukraine and the efforts of the Western powers to isolate it, Russia It can count on the support of several African, South American and Asian countries, including the Chinese giant.
Standing, staring but visibly satisfied, Vladimir Putin appeared on Friday surrounded by about fifteen African heads of state in St. Petersburg, during the second Russia-Africa summit. What message does this family photo send? That Moscow, he assures, hopes to work “hand in hand” with the continent of more than 1,000 million inhabitants.
“The Russia’s attention to Africa It does not stop growing,” Putin said, stating that he wanted to “build a strategic partnership” with the continent, with which the Soviet Union has already forged solid relations.
In his closing speech, Putin highlighted “the commitment of all our countries to building a more just, balanced and sustainable multipolar world order.”
The day before, the Russian president had resorted to the «grain diplomacy» by promising to deliver free grain to six African countries, amid concern over Moscow’s withdrawal from an agreement allowing Ukrainian grain to be exported across the Black Sea.
But the seduction operation of the president with respect to Africa began long before the conflict in Ukraine.
For years, Russia has been carrying out diplomatic and economic offensives on the continent, offering security services -through the Wagner paramilitary group– to countries prey to the jihadist threat.
But in recent months, the Kremlin has had to look for alternatives to its European historical partners.
Thus, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergey Lavrovhas made two African tours so far this year, presenting his country as a shield against Western “imperialism” and “neocolonialism.”
opposition to the West
Moscow also has the support of several South American and Asian leaderssome criticized for their authoritarianism.
Thus, historical allies of Russia such as Venezuela and Cuba they refused to condemn the Russian offensive in Ukraine during the first summit between Latin America and the European Union, held in Brussels in July.
In the joint declaration, the leaders limited themselves to expressing their “deep concern about the war ongoing against Ukraine”, without mentioning Moscow. But not even that formulation was seconded by all: Nicaragua refused to associate itself with it.
And without going so far as to support Moscow, the Brazil of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva declined to provide weapons to Ukraine or impose sanctions against Russia, urging Europeans and Americans to stop “fostering war.”
“(Russian) isolation is a construct invented in the West,” he told the AFP Fyodor Lukyanova political scientist close to the circles of Russian power.
According to him, “Russia is perceived as a country that can be right or wrong, but which is a country that opposes the West».
«And in the new international environmentthis positioning is much more effective and attractive than one could imagine”, he pointed out.
revealing silence
Some countries prefer to remain silent, a silence that betrays their position.
On February 24, the UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of a call for Russian troops to withdraw from Ukraine. Moscow’s usual allies voted against (Belarus, North Korea, Syria…) and some thirty states abstained.
Among them, major powers like Indiaa leading buyer of Russian oil, and ChinaMoscow’s inescapable partner.
Your president, Xi Jinpingwas received in Moscow in March, on a visit intended to lead to relations between Russia and China to a “new era”. Since then, the Chinese and Russian militaries have held several joint military exercises.
For his part, Vladimir Putin He plans to visit China next October, in what would be his first trip to a G20 country since the conflict in Ukraine began.
Since the start of the offensive, the Russian president has visited countries such as Iran or some of central asial, but his movements have been limited by the arrest warrant against him issued by the International Criminal Court, which forced him to resign from attending the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit in Johannesburg in end of august.
