LIVE: Russia's President Vladimir Putin Hails Ties with Africa in Summit at St. Petersburg Summit

them up you know foreign think about it dear friends morning Africa images but I just remember Ed Africa this is sovereign foreign foreign foreign [Music] foreign several States is becoming a thing of the past albeit with the resistance of those who got used to the idea of their own exceptionalism and Monopoly in global Affairs it is no accident that the second Russia Africa Summit goes under the slogan for peace security and development we're focusing not only on the expansion of the Russian African strategic partnership but also such Cornerstone topics AS Global and Regional stability sustainable development of the continent enhancing sovereignty of the African States in all the dimensions Russia and the African States stand together to construct a new more fair and just architecture of the world order together we defend international law the U.N Charter and the central role of This Global organization we are trying to coordinate our approaches on the key issues of the international agenda it is important to note that we have shared or similar positions on many of them this is manifested by the main positions of the political declaration which is no law the U.N Charter and the central role of This Global organization we are trying to coordinate our approaches on the key issues of the international agenda it is important to note that we have shared or similar positions on many of them this is manifested by the main positions of the political declaration which is drafted to be adopted by The Summit Russia and African countries are expanding cooperation encountering the spread of the terrorist threat to react to the challenges in the area of information security together we stand against the use and abuse of the topic of climate human rights and so-called gender agenda for the self-centered political interests we do not accept such illegal practices as unilateral sanctions and restrictive or even punitive measures that damage the countries who pursue an independent policy which create economic problems in the global scale and hold back our development and we cannot accept the replacement of the international law with the so-called rules-based World Order that certain countries declare themselves and interpret and distort and change themselves it is not entirely clear what these rules are and who created them it is clear that certain countries are using them in their own interests and change them for their own benefit most importantly Russia and Africa share our inherent aspiration to defend true sovereignty and the right for our own path of development in the political economic social cultural and other areas such aspiration to Independence and sovereignty does not equal self-isolation quite the contrary it means openness and cooperation of the free states and peoples States as equals in their rights sovereignty is not something you achieve it is something you have to keep fighting for to maintain that is why I would like to remind you the works of Nelson Mandela who said do not judge me by my successes Judge Me by how many times I fell down and got back up again the same goes for State sovereignty we need to defend it we shall not step back or cave in on the external pressure in this aspiration to stay independent to defend the sovereignty and take part in the establishment of the multipolar system based on State's equality Russia and Africa show full solidarity with each other let me note that we witness the African continent becoming a new center of power its political and economic role is on the rise exponentially and everyone shall take this reality into account let us take the example of the initiative of several African States for the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis this is an acute issue and we continue considering it and these means a lot previously any intermediary missions had been essentially monopolized by the countries with so-called developed democracies but now it's different now Africa stands ready to help us find solutions for the issues outside of the zone of its original interests and we respect your initiatives and take them into consideration the authority of the African Regional structures is also on the rise first of all the African Union as the expressor of opinions and aspirations of the entire macro region Russia has actively supported the initiative to provide African Union with membership in the G20 this would be the right solution which would reflect the reality and the balance of power in the modern world we are open to cooperation with other Regional integration groups of Africa yesterday we had a special meeting with their leadership we had launched an initiative to establish cooperation between the Eurasian economic Union and the African Continental free trade area established within the African Union to discuss the possibility of integrational synergy between these organizations and we also share the aspiration of African states to take a more active part in the activities of the United Nations we see the active position taken by the African Union in this regard We Stand ready for practical consideration of any proposals to expand the representation of Africans in the bodies of the United Nations including in the context of the proposed reform of the U.N security Council we believe it is time to mend the historic Injustice towards the African continent distinguished colleagues we have to admit the fact that the situation in numerous African regions remains unstable we still see unsettled International and ethnical conflicts acute political social and economic crisis this is the grave Heritage of the colonial era of the policy to divide and conquer of the western Metropolis in Africa terrorism the spread of extremist ideology transnational crime and piracy all hinder the Continental development to counter these threats Russia also offers its assistance We Stand ready in active cooperation between the law enforcement bodies and the special services of the Russian Federation and the African countries we also intend to continue professional training for servicemen and law enforces of African countries in the Russian specialized academies and universities currently the servicemen from numerous African states are studying in the universities of the Russian defense Ministry in order to enhance the defense capacity of the continent's countries we enhance our partnership in the military and Military technical areas Russia has signed agreements on Military and Technical corporations with over 40 African countries which now receive a wide array of Russian weaponry and military equipment some of them is provided free of charge in order to enhance security and sovereignty of these states our African colleagues take active part in the mail train technical forums and exercises organized by Russia where they can see the advanced types of Weaponry military equipment in Practical use the attention of Russia to Africa is on the rise this can be seen in our plans to expand the Diplomatic presence on the continent we are ready to restore and open new Russian foreign missions and increase the number of employees in a number of existing embassies in Africa this is an actionable step to intensify our contacts with the African countries the political business contacts as well as cooperation in the humanitarian area in the area of culture and tourism as an example let me mention that following many years of suspension we are about to restore the functioning of the Russian embassies in Burkina also an Equatorial Guinea we also intend to expand the network of Russian science and culture centers also known as Russian houses they're currently active in eight African countries and they're about to appear in a number of new African States we would welcome similar steps by our African friends and we will provide all the necessary support in the opening of new embassies consulates and other missions of African countries in Russia dear friends I would like to say a few words of the economic and humanitarian cooperation at Africa yesterday's forum shows that both Russia and the African countries are actually eager to enhance cooperation in these areas and let me be frank our business has something to offer our distinguished Partners from Africa despite the turbulence on the global market the volume of trade with Africa is on the rise it is clear that we are not at our full capacity today in absolute figures the current volume of trade is not what we should be satisfied with we can do much more so far the volume is quite modest the growth of the Russian African trait and the diversification would be promoted by the use of national currencies in the trade and the establishment of new transportation and Logistics chains we understand the importance of unhindered supply of food products for the Social and economic development and the support of political stability of the African States therefore we expand and extend the shipments of agricultural products to Africa in the year 2022 we have sent 11.5 million tons of grains to African countries and in the first six months of this year we have sent another almost 10 million tons despite the illegal sanctions against our exports which seriously hinder the shipments of Russian food products and complicate the transportation Logistics insurance and Bank transactions let me underline that you my dear friends can rest assured that Russia shall always remain and responsible International supplier of agricultural products we shall continue supporting the countries and regions in need we'll provide our grains and other food products including shipments free of charge achievements within the United Nations world food program yesterday as you know we announced that in the upcoming three to four months we will provide additional 25 to 50 000 tons of grains to six African countries free of charge overall Russia intends to continue providing assistance for the development of the African continent by providing more than humanitarian assistance but also trade preferences supporting the creation of modern Industries agriculture assistance through the relevant International structures and agencies in particular from 2020 to 2023 bilaterally we have carried out 11 Russian humanitarian activities in 10 African countries we were one of the first to come to the assistance of the continent States during the coronavirus pandemic we have provided millions of test systems free of charge we have provided mobile medical laboratories and equipment for the special infection Research Center Russia takes part in the debt relief efforts for African countries currently the overall sum of debt cancellation amounts to 23 billion US dollars according to the latest requests of the African countries we will provide another 90 million US dollars for their development to finish my statement dear friends let me underline once again that we sincerely ready to stand side by side with our African friends to work for the future to create the genuine strategic partnership and interaction we appreciate our relations with each African country and with the continent in general and we are sure of the successful future of these relations in the current multipolar world which is under in development thank you for your attention thanks a lot thank you allow me to give the flow to chairperson of the African Union president of the Union of the Commerce Azalea sumani you have the floor your Excellency your Excellency distinguished Vladimir Putin president of the Russian Federation your Excellency ladies and gentlemen heads of state and government distinguished Mr Mustafa key president of the Au Commission distinguished ladies and gentlemen present here I bring you race thank you for giving me the floor at the outset I would like to sincerely thank you for the warm welcome and hospitality thank you for having us here at this Russia Africa Summit we appreciated the dinner that you offered us yesterday it was delicious with wonderful concerts it showcased the great cultural potential behind this wonderful city of Saint Petersburg I would like to once again highlight our cooperation that sets an example we have wonderful skillful people we have creativity we have resilience and it all deserves respect this sets an example and yesterday we reaffirmed it once again during our work that took place in wonderful conditions it led to signing of multiple agreements which would contribute to our cooperation let me emphasize that our partnership holds great future especially if we actively get on board the youth the women this is the future of our countries and we need to knowledge the skills of business to them it would also benefit to the business climate of the African Union countries as well as initiatives to encourage foreign direct investment the African youth is very vibrant there are a lot of startups smes a great deal of effort is invested in invest in research and science despite shortages in investment we need to take into account the priorities of each other certainly the 2063 African Union agenda would contribute to the sustainable economic growth of the Russian Federation and the African Union the African Union is engaged in the economic transformation certainly Russia would participate in the investment it would also benefit from our many resources we want to build an economic and social Africa that is integrated in the rest of the world certainly we need to develop trade investment in line with our shared goals when it comes to training in digital Technologies Russia has achieved a lot here we need to create human capital in order to work successfully in this area in order to support sustainable development in order to engage an increasing number of young people as for peace and security as well as democracy and human rights of course we applaud the efforts of some of our partners but we also ask some of the other partners not to interfere in our domestic affairs they are fighting against unconstitutional changes at times something happens on our continent and that does not benefit our countries the African Union condemns the anti-constitutional changes in Niger we also join here the International Community a few words on bilateral relations between Russia and the Commerce in 1980s during the Soviet era our country got an opportunity to send hundreds of students to the Soviet Union to train them and today these people hold important positions at various authorities that are decision making in our country especially with regard to a business community and economic area some of them make part of my delegation many of them are interpreters that is why we thank you for this friendly and efficient cooperation I'm positive that all of my colleagues present here are also grateful to you they wish to Galvanize this cooperation with Russia we hope that the Russia Ukraine crisis that somewhat halted our relationship would see the resumption of our relations thanks a lot Mr chairman I believe that our Yesterdays agenda was very meaningful and I hope that you enjoyed the show just like the rest of you our artists wanted to Showcase not only what Russia has in terms of culture but also the link between our cultures and I believe that at the end of yesterday's events they achieved to do that thank you for your statement you have noted a lot of interesting things especially when it comes to the youth that is very sensitive African young people are very talented many of those present here despite the fact that a lot of time has passed after their training in the Soviet Union they speak fluent Russian highlights the quality of human potential in Africa thanks a lot and now I give the flow to the interim president of Burkina Faso Ibrahim torim over to you your Excellency your Excellency Mr President combat Vladimir Putin your Excellency chairman of the African Union heads of the delegations thank you hello it gives me great honor to address you here this morning and to convey to you the Fraternal greeting of my people at the outset I would like to thank the Almighty who allowed us to gather here today and to talk about the prosperity and the future of our peoples thank you I'm sorry for maybe offending you somehow my generation asks a lot of questions but does not get any answers here we feel at home but she's also a family to Africa because we share history Russia has sacrificed a lot to liberate Europe and the world from fascism during World War II who have shared history we can say that we are forgotten peoples of the world be it movies books in many ways the role of Russia and Africa in the fight against Nazism has been forgotten but today we stand together and today we're here to talk about the future of our countries and what will happen tomorrow in this new free world to which we Aspire for where there will be no meddling in our domestic affairs we have shared prospects and I hope that this Summit will provide an opportunity to establish just peace and dust World Order and relations between our peoples it's not quite clear to me how come that Africa that has so many resources water solar energy how come that currently it is the poorest continent in the world with the highest levels of famine how come that we have to ask for help we ask ourselves but we don't get any answers we have a chance to build new relationship hopefully this relationship will be for the better to us in order to build a better future for our country on behalf of my generation I would like to say that due to Poverty many had to cross oceans in quest for a better life at times they die at times they starve it's hard for them to survive esobukina Faso it's been eight years since we have been facing the most barbaric and violent form of colonialism barbarism where imposed This Modern form of slavery we were taught one thing a slave that cannot Rebel does not deserve pity and we decided to fight to fight against terrorists that impede our development and our struggle our peoples decided to take up arms in order to fight terrorism we're surprised that imperialists they are called militarized units militarized groups in Europe people take arms in order to defend their motherland they are called that they are said they say that they are not Patriots but when my grandfather had to take up arms it was against his will when people decide to take up arms there's another problem the problem is that the heads of African states do not give anything to these people who fight against imperialism they're calling us armed units Bandits we do not agree with such an approach leaders of African States should not be puppets when imperialists treat them like that I would like to convey the message to the heads of African States we need to ensure self-sufficiency of our peoples of our countries we need to ensure food self-sufficiency and we need to meet all the needs of our peoples together asleep since there's no much time left for my intervention let me pay tribute to our peoples that fight against all the evil glory to our people respect to our people and victory to our people thank you comments you thank you Mr trovo just indeed the truth is distorted to someone converted by someone but indeed this struggle was fought by the Soviet Union to liberate a humankind against Nazism let me draw attention to the fact that the struggle of Africa against it for its independence and against apartheid has been going on not for the interest and for the benefits of the Africa per se but also for the benefit of the humankind because it leads to such results that improve the quality of relations in the world hence it improves the situation in the World At Large and in this sense I agree with Mr trolley it resembles pretty much what was happening with Soviet Union what has been happening with Russia in its struggle and what is happening with Africa in their quest for genuine Independence gives me great pleasure to give the floor to the president of the Central African Republic rather to the president of Republic of Cameroon polybie your Excellency president of the Russian Federation at the outset allow me to express my appreciation on behalf of my delegation and on my personal behalf for the warm welcome paternal welcome that was accorded to us in this wonderful city of Saint Petersburg at the same time allow me to express my position on behalf of all the African States and peoples for arranging and organizing the summit that would without any doubt help strengthen Mutual understanding between Africa and the Russian Federation probably many are surprised at the interest that is showcased by Russia towards Africa here I would like to underscore and everybody knows about that in 1960s we gained independence after a long struggle and back in the day Pasha provided a huge assistance and genuine assistance to my country once again I would like to thank your grand country for this help as for today's Forum it is dedicated to cooperation this cooperation has always been great results to Africa today the world is facing many problems drought economic crisis let alone the covid-19 pandemic it was a new page in our history but let us not forget about other problems skyrocketing inflation and other issues in the face of these challenges we call you for cooperation the kind of corporation that Russia has always enjoyed with Africa I'm confident together we can offer new solutions to our peoples to address all challenges you know there are more than a billion people living in Africa yet we are underrepresented in international organizations namely in the United Nations organization we look forward to Russia's support in a rectifying the current state of affairs which is unjust let me also say that the development problems are still urgent for our countries the current crisis has further aggravated the situation just like in the past we hope that Russia would support us it would help us find a finance and resources what we want is to send a request to the IMF to other financial institutions in order to resolve our problems to address security issues and terrorist challenges that is the area where we also need to cooperate indeed Russia provides assistance to many countries of the world in its fight against terrorism Africa faces these issues as well as many other challenges the whole range of them but hopefully together we will move towards resolving these matches I won't keep listing all the difficulties and problems that we are facing I would like to take this opportunity once again and thank the Russian Federation and its leadership for providing assistance to African countries in overcoming economic difficulties our students are studying at Russian universities they get back to our country enriched with new knowledge and this is something we are grateful to the Russian Federation for would like this forum to ensure that relations between Russia and Africa strengthen thank you for your attention our distinguished colleague has just said that some people are surprised at Russia's increasing attention to Africa however I personally think that this is hardly surprising there is a certain apprehension regarding this process but it is something else that is surprising it was surprising that at a certain point in history Russia started paying less attention to Africa despite the positive experience of previous decades that we had accumulated however it is at some point we did not pay enough attention to Africa but given Africa's future its potential and our achievements accumulated over previous decades it is only natural that we Russia and Africa restore our relations and this process will continue unfolding our work today is another attempt to move down the same path I now give the floor to president tuadora of the Central African Republic thank you your Excellency President Putin of the Russian Federation foreign distinguished chairman of the African Union heads of state ladies and gentlemen today I speak on behalf of the Central African Republic I make my address at the plenary session of the second Russia Africa forum that has taken place in the beautiful city of Saint Petersburg I would like to thank the Russian Federation for its resolve in supporting Africa in its fight for sovereignty and for our rides enshrined in the United Nations Charter I would like to thank the Russian president Russia's leadership and Russian people for this Stellar organization of today's Forum as well as for the corporation with Africa it is engaged in despite all the geopolitical hardships as well as those in climate and energy that we are facing the Central African Republic receives assistance from Russia our friendly relations are at an all-time high Russia and the Central African Republic have enjoyed top-tier relations undaunted by a geopolitical hardships Russia provides assistance to our country including to our armed forces and security forces in their fight against terrorist organizations in 2021 these terrorist groups attacked bangi Amor country's capital our countries our people have relations that saved the Democracy in our country we have organized a free and democratic election and we have managed to avoid a new Civil War that would have devastating consequences on behalf of the people and the government of the Central African Republic I would like to express our gratitude to the leadership of the Russian Federation thanks to Russia's support our country has embarked on the path towards peace and prosperity currently we hold a plethora of summits and make many promises but not all of these promises are translated to reality however we are traversing a food and climate crisis Africa is looking for Reliable economic and Financial Partners Africa is striving for equal and mutually respectful diplomatic relations as well as mutually beneficial cooperation for a long time the Central African Republic was subjugated to a colonial power in 2016 our country started a new page in its history today we diversify our diplomatic relations and established bilateral ties with all countries who are desirous of doing so we develop economic relations and various programs the Russia Africa forum that focuses on a humanitarian component this year is an opportunity to resist the hegemony of certain participants of international relations as part of innovative cooperation with Russia we are looking for practical and Sustainable Solutions for our country and the entire African continent your excellencies ladies and gentlemen our country is subsoil resources and its nature are full of riches however these resources are not enough today because the colonial yoke continues to remind of itself persists the Central African Republic invites all countries of the world to a mutually beneficial and effective cooperation within uh [Music] World Order based on the United Nations Charter African countries want to see their ideals translated into reality as well as peace security and harmonious development thank you dear colleague you said some kind words about our international relations naturally we will preserve the same level of international relations including in the most sensitive areas of our cooperation there can be no doubt about that however we can do and must do more we have plenty of opportunities and will do so we will develop our relations in this area and I'll give the floor to the president of the Republic of Uganda president museveni the floor is yours President Putin their excellencies the African heads of state and government the people of Uganda send you greetings and well wishes I have had a good fortune of watching and participating in Freedom activities in our area for the last 60 years plus in order to understand the struggles we have been involved in we should be reminded that by 1900 the of Africa had been colonized except for Ethiopia this colonization followed 500 years of taking slaves from Africa and the devastation that criminal trade caused it was not only Africa that was colonized but also much of Asia India Indonesia into China Burma the Philippines Malaysia Etc and the sub-education under extermination of the indigenous people of the Americas and Australia however these criminal Acts by the imperialists the slave trade and colonialism provoked the colonized people into launching a resistance movement by some of the black people in the United States of America in the passions of DuBois and pademo who launched the pan-african movement this was the first step secondly in 1912 the African National Congress of South Africa was launched led by new resistance Fighters different from before when the leaders of the resistance were the Kings and the Chiefs such as kabarega Tanzania lobengura of Zimbabwe Uganda Saturday the huge country of the Soviet Union was taken over by Communists in 1917 and so at the huge country of China in 1949 those communists were astonished anti-imperious [Music] firstly a good fortune for that degree the Imperials started fighting among themselves over us I'm referring here to the so-called first and second world wars in effect these were in the imperialist was vying for Domination of the world in those Wars the Imperials to weakened themselves to the advantage of the ant Colonial movement that is how India Pakistan Indonesia it is she got independence some of the Imperials tried to cling to colonies but they were defeated in Algeria Vietnam Kenya Mozambique Angola Guinea bissau Cape Valley Zimbabwe Namibia and South Africa 50. even within the imperious countries we had allies that were against the evil system people like ferna Brockway dingo food or of palmy were with us and with our parents before us in opposing this evil system you take these five factors that caused the defeat of the imperialism and restored our sovereignty to some extent these are again the antonym movement in Africa Asia and Latin America the rise of Communism in the Soviet Union China Cuba North Korea Etc the true in the imperialist wars of the last century that causes the weakening of the imperialists of the imperious countries to our advantage even when our parents were used as Canon folder in those criminal Wars fighting the Japanese and Obama the Italians in Ethiopia the Germans in North Africa and Europe then the fifth the pan-african movement launched by some of the black people in the United States of America under support by some fair-minded persons in the imperious countries persons as I've already said like fena Brockway all of parliament others we are therefore happy to be here in Russia and we take this opportunity to thank the Soviet peoples and other socialist countries for that support however flood Independence did not in the majority of cases in Africa mean disengagement with imperialist economies up to now men of the African economies still face the bottlenecks and distortions of the colonial era although some progress has been achieved a lot remains to be done that is why you hear that the giving people of Africa is currently U.S dollars 2.7 trillion smaller than the individual economies of countries like Japan Germany Etc not not to mention United States or China this standing of the African economies is caused by a number of bottlenecks that I may not have time to enumerate here we have however identified them and we are handling them together with our brothers in the African Union however one example can bring out some of these bottlenecks this is the issue of coffee the global value of coffee businesses currently is U.S dollars 460 billion 460 billion this is the value of the coffee in the world however all the coffee producing countries in the world Africa Brazil Colombia Vietnam all of us take only US Dollars 25 billion out of this the coffee business in the world 460 billion all of us the coffee producers in the world our share 25 billion dollars Africa's share is U.S dollars 2.5 billion out of the 460 billion African share is 2.4 billion with Uganda taking 800 million dollars because we are now producing 800 million bugs of 60 kilograms each Germany Germany a non-cultural producing country earns US dollars from coffee 6.85 billion from coffee more than all the African coffee producing countries my young friend from Burkina Faso was asking about this where the problem is I could see is very well into the young our young Soldier there so you have the answer here this is part of modern slavery this is the modern slavery what is causing this Africa being locked into and also knocking itself into all the producing raw materials of agriculture minerals Etc and abstaining from adding value a kilogram of good coffee today and is about US Dollars 2.5 the same kilogram rusted and processed outside Africa earns about U.S dollars 40. so we get 2.5 dollars for a cure of coffee somebody who is clever outside gets 40 dollars this is the Hemorrhage that has stunted Africa's growth the other bottlenecks but I do not have time to go into them therefore my proposal to our allies of Russia India China Etc is pointed to them that they could help here by policy decisions to buy value-added products from Africa rather than raw materials those are products like processed coffee instead of bean coffee chocolate instead of cocoa beans textiles instead of just cotton steel instead of iron ore foreign the Metro Electric batteries instead of just lithium Etc part of the issues we are solving among ourselves in Africa is the issue of the free-frow of goods and services in the Continental free trade area if this is addressed the other problem of food which people are talking about so much for African societies will also be partially addressed in Uganda we don't have a problem of food Uganda is a net exporter of food products like maize milk bananas fruits fish cassava not to mention beverages like coffee Tea Cocoa vanilla it is produced in big quantities and with irrigation bigger panties are possible without irrigation our Farmers produce 5.3 tons of bananas per hectare with irrigation and fertilizers that production has gone 53 tons per hectare in some of the government supported Farms it is thereofly important for our partners to know that some of the African countries such as Uganda produce huge quantities of food and moreover food of unique nutritional value beef with yellow fat instead of the cholesterol latent types you get from many parts of the world potassium rich bananas High cream milk fish with bladder that is a cure for some Melodies made it with protein carbohydrates and iron together what we actually need are markets in both Africa and Beyond this is part of the problem some of the African countries have got a lot of food but they cannot sell it to the other countries because of the uh of the trade barriers within Africa secondly you could also encourage your companies what addition to the Abundant raw materials in Africa means more jobs for the unemployed African youth that are dying in the Mediterranean in the Mediterranean trying to reach Europe and more money in their pockets they will then afford to pay for more electricity generated by turbines made from outside which creates more jobs and money for the top and producers outside after some delays we in Africa are making some good moves one of them is the cfta the Continental free trade area that is uniting the huge Market of Africa of 1.5 billion people we shall be 2.5 billion in the next 30 Years remember that Africa instead of times bigger than India in the land area but until recently the population of India has been bigger than that of Africa there are for Africa has actually been under populated for much of the Millennia the fact that it is the origin of man homo sapien sapien four and a half million years ago notwithstanding today on account of modern medicine Africa would have optimal population for the first time in human history finally those who ferment was on account of ideological issues are wrong and their time and opportunity wasters human history will move on whether they like it or not did the religious wars in Europe he impose religious conformity in the world you remember there were people who were who wanted to make sure that everybody is a Catholic wanted to make sure and they were using the wall and it's what happened they failed the the mechanic there was the Austria of the austria-hungarian Empire called metanich did metanix holy Alliance stop the spread of capitalism and therefore the overthrow of feudalism when there was a revolution in France in 1789 this was this Revolution was a Bourgeois Revolution was a capitalist Revolution now mechanic was supporting federalism and his answer was to launch War to defeat the the capitalist movement in France but he failed the only Justified was at the just was like the ant colony was was of hegemony will fail and waste time and opportunity dialogue is the correct way I thank you thank you so much thank you very much it is true that slavery today is recognized by all as a crime there is no denying that but back in the day they did everything to fight against you during The Liberation struggle obtaining your own flag as mentioned by our colleague is not enough to be truly independent certain countries are trying to retain their Monopoly in the area of Finance in the area of technology in the area of digital technology and in the area of food this is unacceptable we shall fight against that and many of those present here are aware that the Soviet Union and Russia never believed that we should just buy the raw materials from Africa remember how many Industries how many power plants and steel plants were produced and constructed by the Soviet Union in Africa we shall come back to that practice and we will be doing that on a bilateral and international basis thank you very much now allow me to give the floor to the president of the Republic of Congo all right distinguished Mr President of the Russian Federation English chairman of the African Union president of the Union of comora islands distinguished ladies and gentlemen heads of state and governments distinguished chair of the commission of the African Union ladies and gentlemen our delegation would like to thank you for the warm hospitality we are glad to seize the opportunity to take part in the second Russia Africa Summit first of all I would like to sincerely thank the president his Excellency Mr Vladimir Putin for the warm Hospitality that we've enjoyed here the issues discussed during our today's session in my view are first of all our respiration to peace security and development each hero in history is a separate generation each generation has its own challenges in Africa we are always talking about Unity previously we are fighting against colonialism we had to fight against the apartheid we had to fight for our independence and during this fight Africa has enjoyed the support of the former Soviet Union in its fight for independence all of that was a part of the strategy of solidarity this used to be called the internationalism principle in order to achieve genuine Independence the African countries required competent professional Elites and then the former form Soviet Union has provided us with great assistance Millions were spent for the professional training and education for African specialists thousands of scholarships have been provided today our goal is development for the good of 2 billion Africans that is the population that were expected to see by the year 2050. today just like yesterday as part of The Liberation struggle we are saying that we are fighting we are fighting for our development and Africa cannot continue this fight alone without its friends and partners the world today has turned into a global village we're all living together Mr President today we can confirm that in the industrialization of our continent is not possible without electrification you may remember the famous slogan of the great revolutionary of your country who said that socialism is the Soviet power plus the electrification of the whole country at the same time today as we see the situation 600 million Africans let me repeat 600 million people in Africa do not have access to electricity moreover speaking of the African Continental free trade area as well as the free movement of people of goods and services we must say that this is not possible without modern means of transportation Logistics Transportation links the railroads the sea traffic the Telecommunications the airports the African Continental free trade area is the manifestation of a new vision for our future however the implementation of the free trade area is only possible if supported by the relevant infrastructure and these Investments are quite costly and if our countries are left alone this would be equal to suicide the implementation of such plans is only possible if we unite our efforts as part of the Continental or the regional and sub-regional organizations assistance to Africa by Russia means strategic partnership and we call for the establishment of a strategic mutually beneficial partnership at the same time we as the African countries shall concentrate on defining the main priorities the main infrastructural projects which would be subject for future negotiations as part of the state private partnership we will be seeking Diversified Financial sources including concessions loans for the long term we may discuss various sources of financement Africa can only continue its development in the conditions of synergy self-isolation is unacceptable for us sure there are small-scale projects currently in place but we need the large-scale ones we do not expect any generosity for us we are not begging for money the Russian African partnership has a great future Africa has vast resources our vision of the future of our cooperation is a vast vision and we're doing this in the name of peace based on the mutual trust and confidence between the partners this would allow us to comply with all the obligations and complete all the initiatives picking off peace in Africa I would like to repeat that we do have an aspiration for peace in Africa and in Europe as well this is exactly why I am once again calling to put an end to the Russian Ukrainian conflict there is one African saying it goes that cross suffers from the elephants walking on it this means various aspects of our activities this is a comprehensive problem our population is affected by numerous difficulties and problems coming back to the Russian Ukrainian conflict let me say that the African initiative is worth of attention we cannot under appreciate it this is exactly why I support the words of Mr Putin on this topic once again let me say that we retain our optimism we have numerous problems and we discuss all of them during this Summit and we are once again calling to restore peace in Europe and in your part of the planet thank you for your attention thank you these are very important matters and we will definitely discuss them today we will have a special session for that or for the matter of peace it is truly so this is the basis for any development but let me also take note of a few aspects that were just mentioned in the speech namely infrastructure and professional training in education infrastructure is the basic condition for development this is obvious and here I would like to point out the following Russia has the competence in the Development and Construction of any infrastructural projects and very good competence and experience we have the financial sources for such projects what remains is to work together to elaborate joint mutually beneficial and economically sound tools and solutions for these matters Africa has sufficient resources to work together with its Partners including Partners from Russia speaking of professional training and education we have very good experience of working with talented youth from Africa very good this is the most important aspect the future of the world economy depends on technology on high tech it is impossible to move on without Specialists this is a very important area of our joint work thank you very much and now I would like to give the flow to the president of the Arab Republic of Egypt please thank you very much your Excellency president of the Russian Federation in the name of Allah most gracious and merciful your Excellency president of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin the Excellency president of chairman of the African Union Mr samani your Excellency heads of state and government ladies and gentlemen first of all I would like to express my gratitude to the president of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin for the warm hospitality and the great organization of the second Russia Africa Summit the first summit As We Know was organized in 2019 and we believe that this was an important event for the establishment of partnership between Russia and the countries of the African continent today's Summit takes place in the most complicated International situation since we are witnessing the polarization of various forces and their influence on the entire system of international relations the African countries have a bit in the construction of solid infrastructure for their further development and we are also concerned about the matters of peace and security this is exactly why our countries are trying to do everything to use the resources set their disposal to achieve such goals ladies and gentlemen Egypt has always pioneered initiatives in these areas peace between the strong Powers shall be based on the principles of Justice this has always been our strategic choice we firmly believe that strength is in truth and in logic and not the other way around sure we have our own opinion on what is happening today and this is important for further development of our strategic partnership first of all the African countries should use their sovereignty they should speak out in favor of Peace Justice sustainable development we shall always adhere to the same position regarding all the complicated issues that we are facing today within the United Nations including the matters of peaceful settlement of the existing crisis we should also carefully consider the reasons and the origins of the conflicts and their influence on peace and security Quebec we also need to closely see the issues related to the impact of international sanctions on one country or another take into account the goals of development of African countries in light of the challenges that these countries face we should take into account the issues of food security growing food prices that is why we need to swiftly find a solution to Food Supplies issue it applies to developing countries and we need to bear in mind all the relevant issues naturally we need to build consensus on the green deal and we need to take into account the needs of all the countries as well as the repercussions of this situation for many countries and peoples as for the stance of the African countries it is built upon moderate views that we profess and we believe that we need to resolve all this matters Guided by our interests here financing issues are very important and Russian support to African countries the documents that we adopt today at the summit are crucial to Define our strategic partnership let alone the vast prospects that are opening up in light of the development of our cooperation and it also meets our common interest certainly the areas of economic cooperation and the attention that we pay to industrialization agriculture infrastructure it is all very important for our cooperation with Russia taking into account the historic ties between our peoples let me Avail myself of this opportunity to state that Egypt is ready to contribute to deepening our strategic interaction building upon the principles that we agree on we're also very to step up ties between our companies and fashion Enterprises with regard to the interests of our region we need to take into account the efforts of the African Union as well as all these steps to restore our economy to develop our economy and to strengthen peace and stability in our continent by way of concluding let me thank the Russian Federation and Vladimir Putin personally for this Summit for organizing this event we hope that this Summit will yield the desired result for the benefit of peace and progress thank you thanks a lot your Excellency Mr President relations between Russia and Egypt over the past decades have been strategic that is a simple fact regardless of what our documents State although they State exactly the same thing that relations between Russia and Egypt enjoy strategic neighbor nature in terms of politics economy we have a lot of shared joint projects let me get back to something that was raised by my friend and colleague regarding the food policy food shortages and food prices and so on I've already stated and I would like to repeat it once again difficulties in food and energy Global markets but they emerged not yesterday due to the conflict in Ukraine but they started way back during the covid-19 pandemic when many countries including industrialized countries they closed companies they caused Enterprises due to health concerns they had to support their population and their production in various areas how would they do that at the end of the day they uh emitted a lot of money in the US and in the Eurozone in the Eurozone there was a somewhat lower emission but in the U.S they had bigger mission and they started printing money and allocating this money to buy food and Global markets and prices skyrocketed this had to do with short-sighted energy policy but they didn't have any grounds to rely on efficiency of reliable energy sources renewable energy sources they didn't invest in hydrocarbons this all led to the growth in energy resources prices this affected ultimately the price of fertilizer one mistake after another one lead of one layer to another these are fundamental things that turned the markets upside down the food and fertilizer as well as energy markets this is the cause of all the problems certainly the developments in Ukraine fuel the current problems but the thing is that it was caused to buy the financial and energy policy of Western industrialized countries as well as Financial policy of the West that is the root cause of the twice hike and food markets but certainly we need to think about other matters that are on the agenda I'm talking about the crisis in Ukraine thank you for your statement now I give the flow to the president of the state of Eritrea is working you have the flu Excellency President Vladimir Putin I would like to thank you for giving me the floor I have an Unwritten document or mentioned the statements made by previous speakers have addressed almost the fundamental issues of this joint Summit between the Russian Federation and the African continent my emphasis would be on the process that we are undertaking now in through consultation developing consensus is very critical we are in this second phase of the Russia Africa Swami which in my opinion has highlighted a level of some of the fundamentals for this strategic partnership or the Strategic partnership will have to take stock of serious issues at the moment I would suggest that a mechanism be established to develop there or to to prepare a document for strategizing strategizing on this strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and the continent but this strategy will not have to be a general framework for the partnership that will have to build will lead to further move towards identifying areas of cooperation within the strategy and prepare documents for concrete projects on each and every sector and Industry the sectoral and Industrial planning within a broader strategy taking stock of details that will have to be prepared for the mobilization of resources in my opinion Russia Africa China other partners even outside Africa Latin America Asia developing this project and their manuals or details of the plants that will require the mobilization of resources I would say this continent has as we've told has more than 60 percent of natural endowments globally if these 60 percent could be mobilized to implement projects at a sectoral and Industrial Level then we talk about the time frame for implementing these projects by mobilizing the required resources I'm confident to say that the Russian Federation has all the industrial based and Technology Bay to provide the support required for this strategic partnership between Russia and Africa but also including other continents that will make their contributions of the final achievement of the goals and the draft document will have to be prepared I say now and probably in the coming Summit that will take place anytime next year so that we have a clearly defined strategy the strategy will have to include a number of sectoral and Industrial plans detailed plans on the timing of implementation plus the mobilization of resources not only material resources Financial Resources but also technological and Industrial resources that will have to be mobilized to implement these detailed plans the detailed plans could be implemented by putting in place mechanisms mechanisms that will take every project on its own and Implement ultimately creating an integrated approach on implementing those particular programs and this requires a lot of refinement on the internet uses and then the mechanisms we have to to create I would add all those who have the resources above any any other party other the Russian Federation to provide the support and make the contributions for detailing all the strategy working on details plans on objectives that will be defined by clearly I mean detailed plus the time frame for implementing this project once we have this document ready the contribution from each and every partner or the Continental level on the part of the Russian Federation plus other Global Partners who will join our effort to change the reality in Africa because the coming generation after 25 years will have a population of 2.4 or 2.5 billion within the continent and their issues will have to be addressed but an earlier phrase rather than later on coming facing challenge for the implementation of this project I think this second Summit will have to take sock of the preparation of this document so that each and every one of us will be ready or even working on some of the projects at willing the mobilization of resources that we can made available to the success of this strategic examine I once again would like to thank you President Putin for creating this conducive environment for exchanging ideas and developing consensus but going beyond that to implementable sustainable programs for the benefit of humanity not only Russia and Africa thank you again I totally agree with you don't think about short term and me um then it would be hard to achieve some genuine results so the establishment of such mechanism and strategic partnership is a very important deed that is a beacon that shows where we should be going indeed that is a very challenging task at hand and if you want to compare it with the capacities of our partners from other regions in Latin America and Asia then the best way the best platform would be consultations with our brics partners and here present colleagues for instance president of the South African Republic together we will try to advance your ideas together with our brics partners certainly we also need to think about of course it is a very challenging effort to consider all the sectors all the countries but if we want to get specific results we need to think about it right now I agree with you thank you give the floor to a president of the Republic of guinea-bissau Mr umaru sisoko and Balo thank you um your Excellency president of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin distinguished heads of state and government your excellent semester as sumani heads of African countries distinguished heads of the delegations distinguished representatives of international organizations distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen first and foremost I would like to express my sincere appreciation to president of the Russian Federation Mr Vladimir Putin and the government of the Russian Federation for the warm welcome accorded to our delegation and to me personally in this beautiful and hospitable city of Saint Petersburg I also think the administration of Saint Petersburg for the excellent working conditions that are one of the keys to the summit success Saint Petersburg was previously called lenient guard and certainly this is a historic City this city during murderous fight of World War II inspired people all over the globe and after that they started their struggle to liberate their Nations distinguished ladies and gentlemen heads of state and government of African countries these days the two international events are taking shape they are getting their substance and they're held in Saint Petersburg the first one is Russia Africa economic and humanitarian Forum that already took place it adopted the plan of action for 2023-2026 and now we are participating in the Russia Africa Summit the goal of the Forum and the Summit is to renew and to strengthen historic and genuinely strategic ties that in the second half of the 20th century defined the National Liberation movement in Africa your Excellency President Putin dear guests the delegation of Guinea bissau came to Saint Petersburg that we have done our homework we identified the following priorities cooperation with Russia in three main areas that are important for the development of my country namely education Youth and sports mining energy corporation infrastructure Fisheries naturally the government of Guinea Bissell will cooperate with the Russian government both bilaterally and multilaterally in accordance with the plan of action adopted by The Forum namely Russia Africa humanitarian and economic forum who would use all their potential of our relationship thank you thank you my dear friend you have pointed out three major components energy education and fishery is part of food in all of the above mentioned spheres we have great capacities wonderful cooperation and the relevant Financial Resources we are going to continue working together based on your proposals I now give the floor to the chairman of the presidential Council of Libya Mr al-man theme Mr President Vladimir Putin president of the Russian Federation your heads of state Mr asumani chairman of the African Union and president of the comoros I also agreed the chairman of the African Union Commission musafaki mahamat I would like to express my gratitude to you President Putin of Russia one should also point out that this meeting will show the depths of relations between the Russian Federation and the African Union African countries the African continent in general in accordance with the decisions made at the meeting that took place in Sochi in 2019 ladies and gentlemen currently we are preparing to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the decisions that were made regarding the Strategic pathway of the African continent in order to develop our continent and involve it and its citizens in ensuring stable development in cooperation with the Russian Federation naturally we are going to carry out the key principles on our Continental agenda we will develop our digital economy get ready for the Green Revolution and tap the natural reaches of the African continent Africa is rich in natural resources therefore its development will have a positive impact on the development of world economy and we will endeavor to change the models of cooperation between us and our former allies our time-tested allies rather in order to establish fair prices on natural resources we will oppose onerous loans and credits that become a burden for our people that empty our national budgets and hinder our country's development ladies and gentlemen we try to engage in the development of projects aimed at restoring infrastructure railroads production of clean energy we are trying to counter challenges in our environmental activities we are fighting hunger and we do everything without our power to increase our agricultural output given the current situation we naturally would like to remind you that the Russian Federation is a permanent member of the United Nations security Council therefore it plays an important role in bringing the African continents plans to fruition and our continent is striving for a constant and sustainable development Africa believes that throughout many centuries it was exploited in an unfair manner and despite the fact that formerly all countries have managed to overthrow the colonial rule in reality we have not managed to create genuine National States and together with the African Union we must Endeavor to change the membership of the United Nations security Council despite certain minor reforms that have taken place in recent years the domination of those who have always dominated prison persists we come under pressure they use our financial debt for their interests destroying our economy and increasing poverty and extreme poverty in our countries all of that as well as other circumstances testify to the fact that the Russian Federation might assist us in establishing Fair relations between our countries between the African between our countries and the African unions and their partners we have been striving for Brotherhood between African countries and fighting against illiteracy poverty in the name of establishing a just system I am speaking about the south South cooperation first of all ladies and gentlemen we would like to see these strategic cooperation to develop further and a number of African leaders have signed beneficial agreements with the Russian Federation to help solve the food security problem we demand that the United Nations be realistic in approaching our problems ladies and gentlemen it is also quite beneficial for us to have shared responsibility because when Libya overcomes it problems it will be a fully flinched and efficient member of the United Nations we are ready to share our natural resources and ensure that they serve the entire mankind we have secured a ceasefire we are working to eradicate all phenomena behind National strife we are working on establishing Coleman armed forces in our country and we foreign consider the decisions adopted in the city of Benghazi and we won't peace and calm to be established in all parts of Libya that will enable us to overcome other problems that we have our presidential Council as well as the African Union presided by president of the Congo working together in order to solve our problems we also address our friends in the African leadership as well as our friends in African countries asking them for help in ensuring that all foreign forces leave our territory recent events in the Bradley country of Niger are naturally troubling us we very much wish legitimate authorities to be established there I thank the Russian people and its government for the invitation thank you distinguished colleague you have mentioned a number of issues including food security energy education digital economy naturally what matters most is that a ceasefire is necessary for Libyan and it's essential to ensure genuine National Unity Libya's territory cannot become a fighting arena for third countries on our part we understand the complexity of this process and will do everything within our power to assist in the positive dynamic in the cooperation between various forces in Libya I think we will speak about that in detail later I now give the floor to you the interim president of the Republic of Mali asimi goita your Excellency Mr President your Excellency heads of state ladies and gentlemen I thank his Excellency President Putin or the Russian Federation as well as the government of the Russian Federation and the organizing committee for your invitation to us to participate in the work of this Summit I thank you for the cordial welcome I have received I am happy to be here in Saint Petersburg a historic City at this pivotal meeting Mr President your excellencies the Saint Petersburg Summit taking place four years later after the Soldier Summit testifies to the equality of Partnerships between Russia and Africa based on sincerity long-standing friendship and mutual respect and naturally our relations have a particular quality to them naturally Mali does not share common language with Russia or something like that but we have been cooperating since 1963 when our countries it has gained independence despite various changes that have taken place our country our relations have intensified and diversified in the can be seen in infrastructure science agriculture tertiary education defense security and other sectors despite the geopolitical situation and the global circumstances the people of Mali is mobilized and we intend to consolidate our strategic partnership between Mali and the Russian Federation in order to make sure that it serves our people and brings about its happiness this partnership is necessary Russia has demonstrated that it is mali's loyal partner in trying times it has shown its loyalty and Dynamics it has been by our side when we went through difficult times and Russia has always respected our sovereignty in order to ensure peace and security and restore peace security and stability we need to protect our people and our country's territorial integrity it is a strategic choice for us and naturally we must become fully independent and self-reliant we need to strengthen our Armed Forces this is why in Mali we have defense cooperation with the Russian Federation and we thank you for your support and friendship thanks to Russia we have strengthened our security forces our Defense Forces other uniformed agencies right now the Armed Forces of Mali are on the offense foreign we have brought down the number of attacks against our military bases we have ensured Security in various places and I thank you Mr President once again for your support for your government's support thanks to you we have made strides in our fight against terrorism Russia's cooperation with African countries is more than just about security or defense we also cooperate in human resources as well as in trade economy our partnership has received a new impetus in economy and monetary cooperation for us it is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen our bilateral economic ties Mr President the people of Mali are proud to belong to the African continent we have ancient Traditional Values we have a traditional culture and it matters to us and we share the principles of Justice and commitment to Traditional Values that we share with Russia today more than ever African peoples and Russian peoples Destinies are interlinked together we must face common challenges establishing full sovereignty of our countries fighting terrorism fighting poverty empowerment this fight needs to be effective in Mali we face a significant crisis which resulted from NATO's intervention in Libya we also face various defense and security challenges we have also faced the consequences with the ramification of the covid sanitary crisis this is why I would like to thank all of our friends for their support we thank our Russian friends for their support to this hell Mr President I would like to support your work on concluding fear International agreement on exporting grain to the African continent you have shown an outstanding level of pragmatism and realism and you have worked in the wood in order to conclude an agreement between Russia and Ukraine adhered to International cooperation multilateral cooperation and relations based on equality all the United Nations members shall adhere to the main principles of human rights of the UN Charter we also adhere to these principles in Mali we support the initiative of Russia we call for consensus to protect the principles and the values of the United Nations Charter we stand in favor of renew architecture of international relations this would mean reform in the U.N security Council our Global community shall spare no effort to ensure fair and just reform without politicization of the human rights issues we shall avoid double standards speaking of the UN Security Council reform this is the most important matter within the UN work the African Union needs 10 permanent spots on the U.N security Council we stand in favor of stability of security and this definitely means reform of the UN institutions based on the principles of justice and fairness it is true that according to International forecasts the economy was supposed to be in recession in 2023 however we should closely monitor the economic indicators we see that the brics countries are gaining traction this is a very respected group and the reputable group with a great deal of influence in the global Arena the brics countries for us are hope and we firmly believe that this would be a tool of fighting against the Western domination we also hope that we will find Opportunities and mechanisms of financing development of our countries our world faces numerous complicated challenges and Africa was quite enthusiastic about the current Summit we firmly believe that this is an important event which would allow us to move closer to genuine fair and equal partnership between our continent and Russia without any misinformation a text I hope that we will continue our relations with all the partners in accordance with the three key principles of our Republic namely respect for mali's sovereignty respect for our strategic interests the protection of the interests of the Mali people I also support the pan-african ideas it is important to continue the integration process within Africa thank you very much thank you very much distinguished colleague you have mentioned many important aspects and we were all listening carefully and attentively I would like to point out one thing you mentioned your country's adherence to the Traditional Values this is what brings us together Russia and the vast majority of the people living on the African continent the vast majority of the African countries the Traditional Values are the foundation of our identity of our existence and our sovereignty there is no doubt that this is the basis of our statehood I fully share your approaches and now I give the flow to the president of Republic of Mozambique Felipe is thank you very much Mr President of the Russian Federation Mr Vladimir Putin distinguished Mr azaleasani President of the African Union chairman of the African Union distinguished heads of state and government ladies and gentlemen the delegation of Mozambique a I personally have the great honor and the privilege of being here in the city of Saint Petersburg to take part in the second Russia Africa Summit we express our gratitude to his Excellency Vladimir Putin for inviting us and we express our gratitude to the Russian Federation for organizing this Summit as well as for the relations of friendship and cooperation that we currently enjoy between our countries the relations are meant to pursue mutually beneficial Partnerships between our countries for Mozambique we believe that this multilateral Summit is an important event under the slogan for peace development and cooperation we fully support the principles of maintaining peace and security this is most important for the African people for the peoples of all African countries moreover we also adhere to the major principles of equality of the presence and representation of all the African countries some of them should also be represented on the United Nations security Council it is also important for us that the African countries should also received permanent membership in the United Nations security Council there is no doubt that in this context this is the only way for the African countries to take effective part in the long-term decision making on the global Arena moreover in March 2023 we will also having discussions in the U.N security Council on this exact topic we also firmly believe it is most important to continue our work to establish a common Foundation of all the countries for the fight against terrorism this is also of great importance for peace building and for maintaining peace and Security in Mozambique we also require political Dialogue on the international level therefore we are trying to pursue such dialogue both within our country of Mozambique as well as on various International platforms that also tackle the matters of peace and security distinguished Mr President distinguished guests one of the major topics of the current Summit is development of the African countries and in this regard we believe that we should be talking about Economic Development and human capital development it is of utmost importance to use the human capital for our national development in all the various areas of the economy this is also true for other African States however we're also facing numerous issues including inflation in Mozambique unfortunately these problems are hindering the development of our national economy however we are taking all the necessary measures in order to find Solutions for this situation one of the vulnerable sectors in this regard is our agriculture [Music] in the year 2023 we were also faced with crop yield problems however we are finding Solutions and we are increasing the productivity of our labor in this way we are trying to find solutions for the agricultural producer problems with finding Solutions in the agricultural areas another priority for us is solving the problems related to the youth the young people should not be faced with the problems of famine we also hope to receive certain subsidies and assistance from the international organizations which tackle such matters it is through our common and Joint efforts that we shall find Solutions and prevent new problems in the future in this context I believe that one of the problems that we should be discussing is the relocation of people from the agricultural areas into the cities the urbanization as well as climate change and terrorist attacks in this context during the current Summit we firmly believe that we should continue discussing and expanding the initiatives that have been adopted and initiated here we shall enhance the mechanisms of international assistance as well as find solutions for ourselves the second point is enhancing cooperation in other areas most importantly in the areas of digital economy as well as Transportation the development of Science and Technology we should also work on the producing the added value in our economy and in our industry another important aspect is the development of trade and business links as well as the creation of new jobs and job opportunities for the people of Mozambique we sincerely hope that the situation in our region would get better in the future moreover we also hope that we will continue our work and we will continue cherishing human lives I would like to once again reaffirm our firm commitment to continue our cooperation with the African countries and with the African Union together we shall continue developing our relations with Russia based on the principles of Peace security and mutual benefit this would be for the good of our people and our countries distinguished Mr President Putin the summit that we are attending here would contributes to better relations and cooperation this complies with the desires and wishes of the African people thank you very much thank you very much my dear colleague we have just heard what you were saying and we will discuss all of these matters in Greater detail later I wish you all the success and I hope for continued cooperation now I give the flow to the president of the Republic of senegales the Marquis South I would like to thank your Excellency Mr President of the Russian Federation Mr Putin I would like to thank the chairman of African Union mrsomani distinguished colleagues I would like to thank the chair of the commission of the African Union distinguished ministers singers ladies and gentlemen I would like to thank Zach fonsi President Vladimir Putin for the warm reception that we've enjoyed here and for everything you do to make our staying here as pleasant as possible I am glad to see and to know that this is our third meeting in the last two years we met in 2022 in sochan recently we had another meeting on the 17th of June this year as part of the African mission the current Summit is marked by the spirit of cooperation and partnership our relations date back to the times of the fight against colonialism and we have always enjoyed good relations however it is necessary to continue to pursue our efforts to expand our economic cooperation we have a great capacity for our economic partnership Africa has a territory of 30 million square kilometers it has over 1.3 billion people Russia is also a vast large country altogether our continent and your country represent a vast capacity Advanced Alliance of great demographic and natural resources we can work and cooperate in various areas including agriculture Industries oil and gas digital information technology security Transportation digital economy and so on however we should always pursue the pragmatic goals including investment finance and partnership you may have noted that I am not mentioning the word help or assistance I do not believe in assistance to answer our young brother our colleague the president of Burkina Faso we are not here to beg or ask for something we never come for that anywhere we are here to work to establish decent dignified partnership for the benefit for the good of our people wherever we are in Dakar in Washington or in Saint Petersburg we are always fighting for our dignity and this battle goes beyond the borders and Beyond different ages and generations this was mentioned by numerous presidents and Mr President each generation has its own battles we are fighting the battle against terrorism which is a problem for our continent but we should also work for the sake of our Continental development let us see why exactly Africa ended up in this situation this is our historical Heritage the Heritage related with the colonialism was slavery and this still continues in the modern neo-colonial system the system of Injustice that we are fighting against we are demanding the Yuan ye reform we are demanding reform of the global governance system and today it is these institutions that dictate the rules of the game and unless we change the rules we won't achieve anything this is why it is very important to continue working on the principles of solidarity to continue working throughout the continent because the challenges are very important and relevant we have certain small countries like Eritrea or other states that sometimes hinder our work this is why we shall continue working with everyone to overcome all the existing obstacles we need to work on big Regional projects Africa needs a lot of infrastructure projects it needs railroads electricity dams many other things we need to have mechanisms for financing all this in place as well as a regional programs in order to develop Africa I believe that we can cooperate with Russia just like with bricks and other partners who could work in line with our priorities for our concerns and issues the main concern is the peace on the continent Security on the continent and in the world to de-escalate the situation in order to appease the situation and to restore trade in Grain and fertilizer that is something that I've been talking about since the very beginning of Russia Ukraine conflict we produce corn many other grains but how can we do without fertilizer certainly we need to lift all sanctions regarding trade in fertilizer and grain I believe that we can make progress here also with regard to other partners this would allow us to stand for lifting all sanctions so that countries could go back to the normal trade for the benefits of all Humanity with that I would like to end my remarks we really want Russia to work at the level of the African Union when it comes to security we have a peace architecture for the African Union and currently we're thinking about ways to further work in the future the security Council failed in its Mission namely who is storing peace in the world terrorism is um serious harm to our continent we do not see any solidarity with regard to Africa but this is also important for us another crucial topic is investment together we need to ensure investment for the common good for the comments well-being thank you once again for your support that you provided in time regarding Africa African Union accession to G20 Africa indeed should be part of the G20 to make a world more safe more stable and just Africa should definitely have its place and it should be decent thank you and I wish you every success thank you your Excellency Mr President who gave a very good food for thought and discussion I will try not to lose to spend that much time on that but I would like to highlight some aspects first IV and I believe that everybody agrees that over the past decades although the colonial past gone but the system of neocolonialism is still existing it has been established and we see the hegemony in finance in technology in food sector as well as when it comes to security we accept that we need to live by the rules but we don't understand who created this rules and that is exactly the attempt to preserve this neocolonial system because they do not wish to change these rules you on the other hand called us to change the rules that have been established over the past decades and I agree with you you also said that you do not believe in assistance you know what I personally believe in assistance because if we help our allies like-minded Nations then we are working for our own benefits and there's no controversy here but the thing is that we need to establish instruments for cooperation that would be mutually beneficial basically that is the point of our Summit in order to discuss all of it I agree with you and it gives me great pleasure to give the flow to president of South African Republic Mr ramaphosa you have the floor your Excellency President Vladimir Putin your Excellency president azali astronomy the chair of the African Union and president of comoros your Excellency mustafaqi Muhammad to the chair of the African Union Commission your excellencies heads of state and government honorable representatives of various countries represented here ministers and guests and ladies and gentlemen allow me President Putin at the onset to thank you as well as the government and the people of the Russian Federation for receiving us here in Petersburg and according us great hospitality and especially last night wonderful and delicious dinner and the outstanding performance that displayed the culture of Russia and especially of Saint Petersburg which is this cultural capital of Russia we also want to thank you for enabling the artists to end their performance with the great African sounds and drums and dance that touched our hearts and made us feel at home and thank you very much for that nearly three years ago in the city of Sochi we pledged as African leaders and as the African Federation the Russian Federation to cooperate in a manner that is mutually beneficial and that serves the interests of our respective peoples in the intervening years we have experienced strong geopolitical and economic crosswinds we continue to count the human cost of the devastating coveted 19 pandemic and its impact on our economies as South Africa and indeed as Africa we are greatly encouraged by the Russian federation's commitment to deepening collaboration with the nations of Africa this is important as we chart a new course for economic development growth and prosperity and as we seek to achieve the attainment of the sustainable development goals as South Africa we remember with deep gratitude how the support of the people and the government of the then Soviet Union supported our struggle for liberation as well as the struggles of many other countries and Nations on our African continent today our bilateral relationship remains strong we continue to collaborate in political economic social defense and security spheres we work closely across multilateral platforms such as the United Nations the G20 and as members of brics our participation in forums such as this one is Guided by our quest to realize the African unions agenda 2063 vision of economic integration and inclusive socio-economic development as you know and as a member of brics yourselves as the Russian Federation South Africa will shortly be hosting the 15th brics Summit in Johannesburg we see this Summit as an opportunity to promote enhanced Global cooperation and to achieve common prosperity for the Nations of Africa the brics partners are significant investors in Africa the upcoming Summit will therefore give particular attention to infrastructure development supported by the new development Bank the brics bank that is as well as also supported by the African Continental free trade area from a trading point of view the African Continental free trade area once fully operational will unlock the benefits of the Continental market and generate mutually beneficial opportunities for both African and brics countries alike as clearly articulated by other leaders who have spoken before me but more especially the very wise words of president museveni African countries are shaping their own destinies as nation states and as a continent our substantial resources must be harnessed first and foremost for Africa's benefit to grow Africa's economies and to pursue sustainable development and as stated by others we no longer want to be exporting or soil and dusts and rocks from the minerals of our continent but we want to be exporting finished products that have value there must be respect also for what we do as countries and we must Stop Those countries that count their wealth and their assets in terms of the minerals that reside in the African soil like they did in the past when they counted their wealth they used to count their wealth in the number of slaves that they owned that were taken from the African continent respect and mutual benefit should underpin what we as Africa do as we relate to other countries in the world African countries should a sovereign states be able to also pursue their own independent foreign policy approaches that are not beholden to any other major Global power or blocks this second Russia Africa Summit is an opportunity to further enhance and strengthen International cooperation and partnership for Africa's development we welcome the focus on further cooperation between Russia and Africa to promote investment to facilitate development of value chains and boosts capacity to produce and to export you finished and manufactured products the proposed Africa Russia action plan for the coming years should align with the second 10-year implementation plan of the au's agenda 2063 this will ensure that there is coherence and that the plan is action oriented based on real practical interventions we should also ensure joint monitoring and evaluation of the action plan we need to jointly allocate the necessary funding for implementation and be accountable for concrete deliverables geopolitical tensions are negatively affecting countries across Africa as part of Russia Africa cooperation we must repeat our call for existing Global institutional mechanisms to be strengthened and reformed greater participation of our countries of the global South will promote inclusiveness and engender Trust in this regard the reform of the multilateral financial institutions as well as the reform of the United Nations security Council remain a priority for us Aristotle unfair inequitable and unacceptable that a continent that represents 1.3 billion people continues to be none no rep not represented on the U.N security Council in our interconnected world we are all affected by conflict and instability in other parts of the world we have a responsibility as Nations to work for peace to support peace building and to land our every efforts to bring an end to conflict and War wherever it occurs as South Africa we are steadfast in our position that negotiation and dialogue an adherence to the United Nations Charter are necessary for the peaceful and just resolution of conflict it is our hope that constructive engagement and negotiation can bring about and end to the ongoing conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine we want to thank you President Putin for receiving and listening to the African leaders who came to Saint Petersburg on the 17th of June led by the chair of the African Union his Excellency president azali ashimani where we discussed a number of issues that we believed could lead to a solution of the conflict and we look forward to engaging further with you later today to hear precisely how some of those proposals can be taken forward in conclusion we look forward to the Russia Africa summit playing a key role in supporting our objectives of African integration economic growth peace and prosperity I thank you thanks a lot different who share your view when it comes to the prospects of development of Russia Africa relations we're constantly keeping in touch and will continue to do so as I have already mentioned today we will focus on the situation related to Ukraine here's what I would like to say about brics I would just like to note that this is an international organization that was born here in Saint Petersburg where we are currently holding our mission Russia India and China brought together here and we agreed that there will be annual regular meetings hence a week appeared after that brick Brazil joined us and after that our friends from South Africa also joined us hence bricks currently our fans from South Africa are holding a summit in South Africa and I wish you every success I'm confident that this meeting will be held at the highest level thanks a lot I give the floor to the president of the Republic of Zimbabwe Mr Gaga you have the floor thank you your Excellency God may put me president of the Russian Federation and the host or the second Russia Africa Summit your Excellency chairman of the AU and president of the Republic of the comoros president azali Osman your excellencies heads of state and government distinguished ads of executive bodies and organizations Excellency chairman of the Au commission Mr musafaki ladies and gentlemen I am honored to address this planarization of the second Russia Africa Summit allow me from the outset to express my appreciation to you your Excellency President Putin and through you to the people of the Russian Federation for the warm Hospitality according to me and my delegation since arrival in this beautiful and historic city of Saint Petersburg the history of Africa's development cannot be accurate and complete without mentioning the significant contribution of the Russian Federation dating back to the USSR the Russian people stood with Africa provide immoral Technical and material support to many of our countries as we fought to liberate ourselves from the oppressive minority Colonial rule this supports and solidarity continued after Independence towards advancing the development peace and security of African countries in the case of Zimbabwe we will forever remember the Russian federations decisive intervention together with China in 2008 through a veto which prevented the imposition of United Nations chapter 7 sanctions instigated by our country's Western detractors your excellencies distinguished guests for decades sustainable socio-economic development at Regional and the global levels he has been hindered by the escalating traits of transnational organized crime conflict terrorism that encroach upon National and Global Peace and security in Zimbabwe we have a philosophy that a country is built a country is developed a country's ruled in their country is prayed for by his own people we live now and and no place behind mouth lateralism and strengthening existing institutions as well as Kevin new Partnerships remain key for a just and peaceful New World Order which is unfolding in this context Zimbabwe commands the Russian Federation for its solidarity and support Guided by our shared aspirations and development objectives for the convening this Russia Africa Summit as reflected in the comprehensive agenda this Russia Africa Summit marks a new chapter for advancing progress in identifying the areas of mutual interest further this platform must give impators to our promotion of Mount sectoral and about level cooperation in the fields of agriculture natural resource development industry trade infrastructure and energy development as well as peace and security technological and humanitarian issues the importance of strength and information and trade exchanges through business to business linkages cannot be over emphasized Zimbabwe therefore stands ready to Leverage on the presence of Russian companies at this Summit to advance the modernization and industrialization of our respective countries I wish to convey sincere gratitude to the Russian Federation for offering exhibition space for Zimbabwean companies to showcase the various opportunities existing in our economy and environment said Zimbabwe is open for business and a land of vast investment opportunities in our agriculture in mining in energy infrastructure manufacturing science technology and Innovation icts and tourism among other sectors the future is digital we in Africa need to access science Technology Innovation and invention from the Russian Federation I wish however to highlighter Zimbabwe Men's Under illegal sanctions which were imposed by some Western countries more than two decades ago just because we had decided to reunite our people with its land notwithstanding this my Administration Guided by its policies of Engagement and engagement his chosen to be a friend to all in an enemy to none but some countries have chosen to be our detractors in spite of that policy general elections this year in August International observers in individual countries are invited to send election Observer missions to Zimbabwe may I take this opportunity to reiterate that my government is ready to hold peaceful free transparent fair and incredible elections is that conclude Mr President let us seize this opportunity to celebrate the enduring spirit of the Russia Africa partnership that promises to illuminate our shared path and Propel us towards a future brimming with hope development and prosperity for all our peoples I think we need a more regular Russia Africa Summit of this nature I thank you excellence sleeper I'm not sure it's possible thank you Mr President dear friend I would like to say the following in response to your remarks first and foremost I thank you for your assessment of Russia's input into the development of our relations with Africa sanctions are introduced against those who do not want to play by the rules that were drafted by someone else in this regard we support the idea of the most of people present here about the need to increase Africa's role at the United Nations so that we live by the rules that were not written by someone else and imposed on us but rather according to the Norms of the international law foreign yesterday we discussed these things at our bilateral meeting and we will develop our bilateral cooperation I now give the floor to the chairperson of the African Union commission Musafa Kim Ahmad your Excellency President Putin president of the Russian Federation chairman of the African Union and president of the comoros Your Excellence is heads of state and government heads of delegations ladies and gentlemen distinguished guests first and foremost I would like to address you President Putin president of the Russian Federation and thank you for organizing this Summit and for inviting the African Union to it I would like to thank you for the warm welcome accorded To Us by you personally the Russian government and the Russian people foreign in October 2019 the first Russia Africa Summit took place and today many people came to Saint Petersburg for the second Summit the second Russia Africa Summit is taken place in a polarized World context characterized by a war between neighboring countries I would like to raise this delicate issue to highlight the importance the African Union attaches to peace and respect for a territorial Integrity as well as sovereignty of states and the principle of good neighborliness and settling crisis via negotiations and compromises that would be mutually beneficial these are the principles inspiring the African Union in these fraternal conflict that negatively affects two countries and the rest of the world it is based on the principle of justice that we need to settle these conflicts naturally we are concerned with the supply of grain the grain initiative must serve all countries of the world African countries in particular your Excellency ladies and gentlemen as part of this Russia Africa Summit the African Union follows the logic of the 2063 agenda namely mutually beneficial cooperation and we think that partnership should be based on bilateral cooperation in the name of achieving our own objectives without detriment to other countries interests it was in the same spirit that the first Russia Africa Summit took place there we adopted a declaration that outlined the framework for our cooperation and given the impact of the economic context related to the covid-19 pandemic and the absence of active work or progress it is rather Limited institutionalizing partnership requires certain conditions namely establishing a joint commission that would work to implement the plan of action adopted under the Declaration speaking of our specific action to implement the above mentioned plan we need to be very clear and very Swift in galvanizing our partnership and giving it a new impetus to improve our relations in the interests of Alma peoples also let us not forget the assistance that the Soviet Union provided to our countries in our fight against colonialism and apartheid Africa has a surface of 30 square million kilometers over 1 billion people live in Africa Rivers forests we have tremendous potential when it comes to human and natural resources and it is a vast Market your excellencies ladies and gentlemen heads of state and government the peace security development Triad is the slogan of the year Russia Africa Summit and Forum it is within the same spirit that we need to ensure that our objectives are reached besides we also discuss energy infrastructure transport networks digital Technologies trade peace security development these principles and ideas will be outlined in our joint declaration naturally we also need to use the necessary resources in medicine education transfer of Technologies in order to give a new impetus to all of these changes however our partnership should improve good governance and assist multilaterality in international relations the security Council reform is fully in line with these principles because it will remedy the historic Injustice against all those Africans who are underrepresented in this vital organ ladies and gentlemen the effectiveness of this partnership can only be measured by results and the work conducted at The Summit needs to enable us to measure our results and enable us to overcome the difficulties that we are facing naturally four years is not nearly enough to assess our progress and given the complex situation we have our own concerns however we believe in this partnership and the presence of the African countries here today is proof to that we strive for tangible results that we will take into account in order to overcome various difficulties that we are facing we need to work and implement the 2063 agenda as well as cooperate with Russia and Russia African Union cooperation is very important for these girls the trade balance between Russia and Africa is balanced but still there is room for improvement our investment and trade figures show that our trade exchanges have yet to achieve the limit of our potential our energy cooperation needs to be incentivized as well in this area we need to do our utmost to elaborate a joint approach and give us enough energy to industrialize our countries food security affects the development of our agriculture in this area too we need specific action strengthening our security cooperation and Joint fight against terrorism necessitate that we adopt I joined Declaration on governing this area my experience as chairman of the African Union Commission gives me the right to speak on behalf of the African Union as well as the convergence points that were adopted together by all of us we need to use facts and influence our daily life so that we could improve lives everywhere in Africa and I would like to thank you for your attention thanks a lot Mr Muhammad who already talked about that and we'll be able to discuss the situation related to the situation in Ukraine but we agree with you all the con contradictions should be resolved by negotiations but the thing is that they refuse to have negotiations with us the point the essence of the conflict is that the security threats for Russia were created by NATO once again they refused to talk to us when it comes to ensuring equal security for everyone including Russia and a Ukraine also refuses to negotiate they officially declared that and the president of Ukraine adopted a developing decree that bans negotiations but we have repeatedly stated and I said it officially that we are ready to negotiate we cannot impose these negotiations on everyone that is why we need to talk with the other side although we think our African fans for the attention to this matter as for Russia Africa cooperation of course we have been working together our colleagues our agencies have been working accordingly in order to put it into the Declaration and we're grateful to the African Union commission for taking most active participation in this effort hopefully as a result of our joint efforts we'll adopt this declaration deaf colleagues dear friends I would like to announce a short break we have a lot of speakers on our list we'll have a short break after that we'll have a working luncheon thank you for this joint effort

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Id: rHLYIcvLpSM

Length: 188min 26sec (11306 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 28 2023