Russian President Vladimir Putin is meeting with African leaders in St. Petersburg on Thursday (27 July) in a piece of diplomatic theater designed to portray Russia as a great power with many friends, not least in Africa. This is far fewer than at similar summits held elsewhere, including a meeting in December 2022 with Joe Biden that dozens of African leaders flew to Washington DC to attend. “Some leaders in Africa now feel compelled not to go to signal their concern about Russia’s unprovoked aggression in Ukraine,” the ambassador said. To that end, African leaders are expected to look to Putin for concrete promises on grain supplies at a summit, with some also likely to seek clarity and assurances on the future of Wagner mercenaries in the continent. Some African leaders see the Kremlin as a useful foil against the West but also a source of destabilization and disinformation efforts in Africa, modest trade and minuscule investment.

Source: The North Africa Journal July 28, 2023 01:17 UTC