<
https://theconversation.com/why-russia-is-on-a-charm-offensive-in-africa-the-reasons-arent-pretty-187711>
"Russia is the source of less than 1% of the foreign direct investment into
Africa. Substantively, then, Russia brings little to the continent. But the
fact that Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is making a high-profile trip
to Africa in the throes of Russia’s war on Ukraine reveals how much Russia
needs Africa.
A priority for Lavrov’s trip to Egypt, the Republic of the Congo, Uganda and
Ethiopia is to show that Russia is not isolated internationally, despite
expansive western sanctions. The objective is to portray Russia as an
unencumbered Great Power that maintains allies around the globe with whom it
can conduct business as usual.
Russia is also vying to normalise an international order where might makes
right. And democracy and respect for human rights are optional.
Lavrov’s Africa trip is significant, accordingly, for Russia’s geostrategic
posturing. Russian messaging recasts Russia’s imperialistic land grab in
Ukraine as a broader East-West ideological struggle. To the extent that Moscow
succeeds in this framing, few African countries will criticise it.
This, in part, explains why 25 of Africa’s 54 states abstained or did not vote
to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine during the UN General Assembly
resolution ES-11/1 in March. This ambivalent response was in stark contrast to
the overwhelming condemnation of Russia’s aggression from every other region of
the world."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
