Putin Assures African Leaders at Russia-Africa Summit: "We Will Prevent Global Food Crisis"

Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed leaders and officials from numerous African countries at the Russia-Africa summit, assuring them that Russia is making every effort to prevent a global food crisis.

Despite concerns about the potential shortage and price spikes resulting from Russia's withdrawal from a grain shipment deal with Ukraine, Putin stated that Russia can replace Ukrainian grain through commercial sales and grant aid to African nations.

Putin's goal at the summit is to strengthen ties with the increasingly assertive continent, which is home to 1.3 billion people. In addition to food exports, Russia plans to deepen relations with Africa through increased enrollment of African students in Russian universities and the opening of Russian state news media bureaus in many African countries.

Putin also proposed the creation of a "common information space" to provide objective and unbiased information to Russian and African audiences. The summit was attended by fewer African heads of state compared to the 2019 summit due to alleged Western pressure, but numerous African countries were represented by senior officials or ambassadors.

The fate of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, was another important issue discussed at the summit. African nations that contract with Wagner, such as Sudan and Mali, are interested in its future as it relates to the exchange of natural resources like gold. Russia stated that the company will continue working in Africa.