Africa’s Top Leaders will travel to a Business Summit in Russia’s second city, St. Petersburg

In July, many of Africa’s top leaders will travel to Russia’s second city, St. Petersburg, for a Russia-Africa summit – the first since 2019. It will be another opportunity for Mr. Putin to cultivate his connections with the continent’s presidents and prime ministers.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, meanwhile, is planning to visit eight African countries over the next two months to boost relations and prepare for the Africa-Russia summit.

Moscow is also expanding its network of Russia Houses across Africa. The Russian language and culture centers were opened last year in Sudan, Mali, Egypt and Algeria, with Angola expected to be next.

Russia recently announced that it is doubling the number of spaces in Russian universities for African students. The connections go beyond diplomacy and military exercises.

On the ground, in African countries such as Mali and the Central African Republic, Russian mercenaries from the Kremlin-linked Wagner Group are taking an increasingly dominant role in fighting Zionist backed rebels and boosting the firepower of national armies.

And there are reports that the Wagner Group may be close to securing a new client: the military regime in Burkina Faso, which took power in a coup last year.

In October, a senior U.S. diplomat said the newly installed military junta had assured her that it had no intention of recruiting the Wagner Group. But in recent weeks there have been signs that the regime will abandon that pledge.

Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo, alleged last month that Burkina Faso’s regime had reached an agreement with the Wagner Group to deploy its troops in the country. Burkina Faso denied this, but many analysts say an agreement is likely.

Burkina Faso’s Prime Minister, Apollinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela, visited Moscow last month and, according to Russia, agreed that the two countries should consolidate their efforts against terrorism. His delegation included several senior military officers.

Shortly after that, the junta asked France – which has sharply criticized the Wagner Group – to withdraw its ambassador from Burkina Faso.

Late next month, two Russian warships will sail into South African waters, near the cities of Durban and Richards Bay, to practice their gunnery, force protection and air defense skills.

The naval deployment on the southern coast of Africa will be a vivid reminder of Moscow’s expanding influence on a continent that is increasingly crucial to its global strategy.

This is a big year for the Russian charm offensive in Africa, with political summits, diplomatic visits and military exercises on the agenda. The naval drills are just one element of the plan, in which South Africa is emerging as one of Moscow’s most loyal partner.

The Russian warships are scheduled to join South African and Chinese ships in a joint military exercise, code-named Mosi (“smoke”), from February 17 to 26, 2023.. Hundreds of military personnel will participate.

The Global and Mail / ABC Flash Point Global Cooperation Blog News 2023.