The Russia-Africa Summit Failed

Despite lengthy preparations and loud publicity, the results of the Russia-Africa summit held on July 27-28 in St. Petersburg were not impressive. Only 17 out of 54 countries were represented by top officials at the summit and five countries completely ignored the invitation. The representative level of the event can hardly be called high. The results of the Summit also look doubtful for the Kremlin.

Disappointment with Russia

A few years ago, Russia was actively increasing its influence in African countries. This process was facilitated by ties established since the Soviet era, built on a common "dislike" of the United States and the Western world.

The militants of the Wagner PMC terrorist organization under the leadership of Yevgeny Prigozhin have become a significant reinforcement of the "friendship" between the nations. In recent years, they have established themselves in various African countries affected by conflicts, where they have helped representatives loyal to Russia seize or retain power.

If we take a closer look, Prigozhin's activities in Africa are remarkably similar to the work of military trading companies of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when the power of the empire was used to exploit the natural resources of distant countries.

Likewise, the Wagner PMC actively cooperates with the authorities of those African countries where there are attractive sources of raw materials and the ability to control business, thereby financing the Kremlin's activities.

The appearance of Wagner PMC leader Prigozhin at the Summit demonstrates the main dimension of modern Russian-African relations, which are based on mercenarism, violence, and weapons.

Russia under Putin's leadership has no doubt that this should remain this way, concludes Jean-Pierre Mara, a former member of the Central African Republic's parliament: "He needs Central African gold, Malian gold, to finance the war, so it's obvious that nothing is going to change."

However, something is changing - that is, the attitude of African leaders themselves to the Wagner PMC’s activities on the continent. The true motives of the Prigozhin-led military terrorists are essentially imperialistic and devalue Putin's rhetoric about fighting neocolonialism, discrediting Russia in the eyes of Africans.

Cheap gifts 

Like a true empire, Russia is trying to buy the loyalty of African leaders with helicopters, attention, valuable gifts, and above all, grain. At the same time, it demonstrates a supercilious attitude by offering significantly less than it can.

Putin's elaborately orchestrated speech at the opening of the Russia-Africa summit was meant to demonstrate a generous show of solidarity with the people of the African continent.

"In the coming months, we will be ready to provide Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, the Central African Republic and Eritrea with 25,000-50,000 tonnes of grain free of charge," the Russian President said at the "economic and humanitarian" meeting, further adding that deliveries could begin "within three to four months."

Ten days after Russia unilaterally withdrew from the "grain deal" that partially allowed exports of Ukrainian grain blocked by Russia in 2022, and against the backdrop of massive bombing of its neighbor's grain infrastructure, Putin did not even mention the fears of inflation and famine expressed by African countries and other members of the Global South.

To this end, Putin's promise to supply six African countries with free grain was perceived as yet another example of Moscow's populism, first of all, because the declared volumes of "free grain" do not compensate for the deficit caused by the naval blockade of Ukraine.

"At the conference, even Russia's promises of free grain were met with great skepticism. They were also surprising because (the numbers) were much smaller than I expected," Matthew Orr, Eurasia analyst at RANE, a geopolitical risk analysis and advisory firm, told VOA, adding that even if six countries receive the maximum, it is only a "drop in the bucket" and "it is much less than the amount of grain that Russia is stealing from Ukraine."

"African countries are showing 'disregard' for Russia," says Marlous van Waijenburg of the Department of African and African American Studies at Harvard University.

Some African leaders have refused to accept free grain, e.g. Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who said he did not need additional grain, although he thanked the Russian president.

According to experts, this clearly showed that Russia had blundered in its strategy towards Africa.

A trick that failed 

The Russia-Africa summit emphasized Russia's growing isolation. Despite its interest in cooperating to jointly confront the West, the Kremlin failed to offer Africa and the Global South anything more than imitation of dialogue and attempts at cheap bribery.

Reuters reports that even the small group of African leaders who came to Russia did not behave as President Putin expected them to, i.e., did not show full loyalty.

Despite the promise of "free grain," on the second day of the summit, African leaders tried to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine and restore the Black Sea corridor for Ukrainian grain exports. The African leaders did not directly criticize Russia, but their speeches were more coherent and decisive than those voiced by African countries so far, Reuters notes. Acting alongside the Western powers much hated by Putin, President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa emphasized the need to adhere to the UN Charter.

"As South Africa, we are steadfast in our position that negotiation, dialogue and adherence to the United Nations Charter are essential for the peaceful and just resolution of conflicts. We hope that constructive engagement and negotiations can bring an end to the ongoing conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine," Ramaphosa emphasized.

It is worth adding that Russia's relations with some African countries became more complicated as the Kremlin demanded President Putin's physical presence at the BRICS summit in South Africa next month. The negotiations lasted for several months. Eventually, South Africa refused to allow Putin to attend the BRICS summit due to the possibility of arrest under an International Criminal Court warrant.

Putin sought to use the summit to give a new meaning to Russia's cooperation with Africa and to enlist the continent's support in confronting what Putin calls "US hegemony and Western neocolonialism." But the main topic of the summit was African leaders' attempts to convince Putin to move toward ending the war with Ukraine.

Back in June, African leaders tried to offer Kyiv and Moscow a plan that included the withdrawal of Russian troops, the withdrawal of tactical nuclear weapons from Belarus, and the suspension of Putin's arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court and the lifting of sanctions. Putin coolly accepted these proposals and said during the summit that Russia was "grateful to our African friends for their attention to the problem."

People in Africa realize that only a return to the grain deal by Russia is in the continent's interest. Even Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is considered to be Russia's close partner, expressed dissatisfaction: "I look forward to reaching an agreement on a grain deal that takes into account the needs and interests of all stakeholders, putting an end to the constant rise in grain prices."

It is significant that several leaders refused to take part even in the final photo of the summit. African leaders feel that it is not worth putting their countries at risk by deepening relations with Moscow that no longer exudes strength and reliability.