Russia offers free grain to six African countries

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 28 Jul 2023 by Alex Teddy
On July 27 the Russia-Africa Summit took place. Putin promised grain to 6 countries. This came after Russia ended the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Russia will provide up to 50,000 tons to Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Eritrea, Somalia and the Central African Republic. Eritrea was the only one of the six to vote for Russia in the UN on the Ukraine issue. Putin also said there would be no charge for delivery of the grain. 17 African leaders attended the summit. The most prominent was the President of South Africa. Ukraine exported 33 million tons of grain through the BSGI. Only a fraction of this was sold to the six countries. The United States had urged African countries attending the summit to ask about the surge in world grain prices caused by the non-renewal of the BSGI. Russia began its African Summit in 2019. Two years had to be skipped due to coronavirus. The 2023 edition is the smallest yet. China and India have had African summits for over 20 years. Putin likes to underscore that he has global reach. A Russian foreign policy strategy document published in 2023 identified Africa as a growth area for Russian influence. Wagner fighters are still active in African countries. The BRICS Summit will take place in South Africa in August 2023. Putin will not attend. This will avoid embarrassment for South Africa, which would be compelled to arrest him because of an International Criminal Court warrant.

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