President Vladimir Putin will be hosting dozens of African leaders next week as Russia seeks to reassert its influence on the continent and beyond.
The heads of some 35 African countries are expected for the first Africa-Russia Summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi next Wednesday and Thursday.
For Putin, the summit is a chance to revive Soviet-era relationships and build new alliances, bolstering Moscow’s global clout in the face of confrontation with the West.
“Russia has always been present in Africa, this is a very important continent,” Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said ahead of the summit.
“Russia has things to offer in terms of mutually beneficial cooperation to African countries.”
Egyptian President and African Union chairman Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who Putin has fostered as an ally, will co-chair the summit.
