Recently, Russia has been actively developing cooperation with African countries, especially in the military sphere. At the moment, Russia has already signed an agreement on military-technical cooperation with more than 40 African states. Russia is also determined to continue training military personnel and law enforcement officers of African countries in specialized institutions of the Russian Federation.
The leading African countries are striving to develop their defense potential in order to defend national interests and counter the threat of expansion of separatist and terrorist movements, therefore they welcome military cooperation with Russia. It is not surprising that many African countries took part in the international military-technical forum Army 2023, held in Moscow August 14–20.
Earlier, various media outlets reported that at the Army-2023 forum, representatives of the Russian Ministry of Defense, in conversations with African delegations, insisted on exclusive cooperation with them. The Russian Ministry of Defense offered its own PMCs to African countries interested in strengthening security.
Now, new information has become public during the Army-2023 forum. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation intends to create military bases in all African countries that previously housed military bases of the USSR. These are Egypt, Ethiopia, Libya, Tunisia, Somalia, Guinea and Angola. At the same time, Russia already has military bases in many African countries. Thus, the Russian Ministry of Defense continues to strengthen its influence in Africa and is seriously aiming to transfer troops to the region. All prerequisites are emerging for the creation of a developed Russian military infrastructure in Africa.
Russia’s military-technical cooperation with African countries has traditionally been one of the key instruments of Russia’s foreign policy on the continent. The military-technical partnership between Russia and the African continent is currently at a high level and is developing rapidly.
By V. Albia