Few results emerged from the two-day Africa-Russia summit. The African leaders are going home without either a grain deal or new steps to end Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
During a post-summit press conference, President Vladimir Putin said the recent decision not to extend the grain deal with Ukraine has benefited Russian companies, as it led to rising grain prices – following the same logic that rising fossil fuel prices boosted Russia’s revenues after the invasion last year . Part of the increasingly abundant grain money will go to “the poorest countries”, Putin promised.
The statement comes after Putin already promised free grain deliveries to six African countries when the meeting began.
But several African leaders, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, expressed disappointment that a new grain deal, which would allow large-scale exports via Ukraine and the Black Sea, was not agreed.
– We want the grain agreement to be reinstated and the Black Sea to be open, said Ramaphosa.
– We are not here to appeal for donations to the African continent, he added.
Putin also said during the press conference that Russia will analyze the African leaders’ peace proposal for Ukraine, the details of which have not been made public. But the Russian leader added rhetorically:
– Why are you asking us to pause the firing? We cannot pause when we are attacked.
The summit between Russia and African leaders came at a time when the Kremlin is trying to secure more allies in its war of aggression against Ukraine. But during the meeting in St. Petersburg, only 17 heads of state and government participated, which can be compared to the last corresponding summit in 2019, when a total of 43 African leaders participated.