GILBERT KHADIAGALA | African states need to nudge Putin to commit ending war

Two critical issues must be top of mind for African leaders when they meet President Vladimir Putin at the second Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg this week.

First, they should be concerned that they don’t have a common position on the Russian-Ukraine war. The second issue of concern is the presence of Wagner group mercenaries in African conflicts.

I am a scholar of international politics who has written on major power engagements in Africa and on Africa’s role in the Russia-Ukraine war. In my view, this summit serves as an opportunity for African nations to bury their divisions on the Russia-Ukraine war. These were heightened during the votes in the United Nations General Assembly in 2022.

The June 2023 African Peace Initiative by seven African leaders to Russia and Ukraine was a bold opening effort to find peace in a war that has created a humanitarian and economic crisis. The African mission comprised South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypt’s Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Congo’s Denis Sassou Nguesso, Comoros Azali Assoumani, Senegal’s Macky Sall, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Zambia’s Hakainde Hichilema.

Despite the widespread scepticism that greeted the African peace initiative, it made a strong case for peace to Russia and Ukraine. It has emboldened and opened doors for further diplomatic attempts by other global players.

The St Petersburg Russia-Africa summit should be an opportunity for Africa to put pressure on Russia to start unlocking some of the key issues raised in the 10-point peace plan tabled by the African leaders.

Second, African participants at the St Petersburg summit must make their collective voice heard on Wagner Group mercenaries in African conflicts.

The lead-up to the summit coincided with reports that Wagner’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, planned to relocate most of his mercenaries to Africa. This after falling out with Moscow in June when Wagner forces launched a failed mutiny against the Russian government.

Wagner mercenaries have a substantive presence in the Central African Republic, Chad, Libya, Mali and Sudan. They have been accused of gross human rights violations and natural resource exploitation. In March 2022 they, alongside local forces, took part in the massacre of about 500 people as well as rape and torture. More abuses by the Wagner group forces have been reported in the ongoing civil war in Sudan.

At the St Petersburg summit, African leaders should remind Putin that the Wagner Group is not Russia’s best export to Africa. Moreover, it is not a friend of Africa. This includes those regimes that invited it into their domestic conflicts. A consistent policy of building bridges in Africa would begin with Putin’s condemnation of the mayhem of the Wagner Group in Africa.

Russia needs the summit to help it win more friends in Africa. But it should also be aware of concerns that it is unable to compete with the west and China in Africa because it does not bring any tangible resources to the table.

The St Petersburg summit is billed as an economic and humanitarian forum. The African leaders need to impress upon Putin that the most immediate humanitarian act he can take would be to allow exports of Ukrainian grain and fertilisers through the Black Sea. This is part of the 10-point African peace initiative.

Perhaps to entice more African states to attend the summit,president Putin has offered to replace Ukraine’s grain supplies to Africa with Russia’s grain, food products and fertilisers. But this unilateral promise is unlikely to meet all of Africa’s needs.

In addition, African states should use the collective weight of the continent to nudge President Putin to commit to a speedy end to the war.

Probably to lower the expectation of African participants at the summit, president Putin has spoken in modest terms about building national human resources capacity and inviting Africans to a global youth festival in Russia next year.

– The Conversation