On October 23-24, Sochi, under the chairmanship of President Vladimir Putin and Chairman of the African Union, President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the Russia-Africa Summit will be held. Such a large-scale event has no analogues in the history of Russian-African relations.
In Africa, the degree of interest in the restoration and further development of relations with the Russian Federation is such that more than 40 senior leaders have declared their intention to arrive in Sochi. In general, at the forum, with few exceptions, almost all countries of the continent will be represented by delegations of the highest level.
It must be recognized that the desire to strengthen ties with Russia for many Africans is based on experience with the Soviet Union, on gratitude for its role in decolonizing the continent and for its subsequent support in building statehood and national economies. It was the power and influence of the USSR, which achieved in 1960, despite the fierce resistance of the oldest democracies of the West, the adoption by the UN of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, allowed Africans to gain the coveted freedom, providing an international legal basis for the emergence of which the colonialists resisted.
Returning to the summit, it is worth noting that special attention will be paid to the state and prospects of relations between Russia and the countries of the African continent, the development of interaction in the political, economic, technical and cultural fields. It is supposed to discuss a wide range of issues on the international agenda, including joint opposition to new challenges and threats, strengthening regional stability. Following the meeting, it is planned to adopt a political declaration on the main areas of Russian-African cooperation.
As part of the summit events, on October 23, the leaders of Russia and Egypt will open an economic forum with the participation of Russian and African officials and representatives of big business. Following the forum, it is expected that a significant package of agreements will be signed in the trade, economic and investment sectors.
Note that over the past five years, trade between the Russian Federation and African countries has doubled and reached $ 20.4 billion in 2018.
Among the key topics of the Forum:
– Strategies for entering the African market: features and development potential
– Prospects for Russia-Africa cooperation in high technology
– International collaborations with leading startups
– Development of new economic zones
– From export to production localization
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