RussiaSIA and Africa have vowed to get rid of any dependence on global mechanisms controlled by the West, saying such measures as illegal sanctions and weaponisation of the United States dollar were tearing the world apart.
Emerging from a three-hour tête-a tête preceded by two-day thematic interactions during the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum here yesterday, African Foreign Ministers or their representatives in some instances, and their Russian counterpart and his team, said the time to be hoodwinked by the West was long gone.
In his remarks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said globalisation had initially been pitched as a perfect way to promote development but it was now fragmenting the world.
“We are being torn apart by the West. They are basically destroying all the things that we held as sacrosanct,” he said.
Mr Lavrov said due to such challenges, Africa had remained on the periphery of industrialisation, mainly selling primary commodities with no value added.
“What we see now is a wave of neo-colonialism. Africans must be masters of their own destiny,” he said.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Mauritanian Foreign Minister, Mr Mohamed Salem Ould Merzoug, who said Africa was going through one of the most dangerous episodes after World War 2.
He said it was unfortunate that the United Nations had failed to live up to expectations.
“Unfortunately, the UN is now a shaky house. It is not stopping the wars. There is no balance. As Africans we are absent from the global governance system. The closeness of the Russian Federation and Africa means we have to take dignified strategies (to overcome this),” said Mr Merzoug, whose country is the current chair of the African Union.
“We are a young continent of which 62 percent of the 1,4 billion people are under 25-years-old. Also 60 percent of our arable land is not in use. We have enough resources but we should learn to use them”.
He said Africa had a unique identity and that is what brought Russia and Africa together.
“We are united by history. Our continent is rich so we need to take our rightful place and as far as we are concerned it is important for us to reconfigure the existing economic systems ,” said Mr Merzoug.
He stressed the need for fairness, transparency and balance.
“Wars and conflicts are all stemming from current global systems. Fairness is lacking throughout the world.
“The advent of consolidated relations with Russia and China presented a ray of hope for the continent. The adoption of the Agenda 2063 Plan by Africa was a key strategy for the continent and solid relations with Russia and other countries will yield tangible results”, Mr Merzoug said.
“Our strength is our young people, plan of action and unity. We need economic integration at regional levels. It’s our unity that has allowed us to have these discussions. All Africans who came here today realise how important Russia’s assistance is. The similarity of many of our positions on security matters and many others is key”.
It was the AU’s view that sustainable security needed to be global. This includes food and energy security, among others.
In this regard, Russia has been instrumental in supplying Africa with 50 percent of its grain requirements.
“Russia is a long-standing partner and a long-standing friend”, said Mr Merzoug.
On its part, Russia said it stood ready to assist Africa
“Africans must be masters of their destiny. Russia is happy to help,” Mr Lavrov said.
Zimbabwe was represented at the meeting by Foreign Affairs permanent secretary Ambassador Albert Chimbindi.
Minister Mavetera and Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Director for International Affairs Mr Richard Mahomva and other Government officials attended the two-day Summit in the resort town.
More than 1 500 delegates and 45 foreign ministers from Africa attended the two-day summit which ended here yesterday.
