Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister, Karamoko Jean-Marie Traore, looks forward to the coming new year with "much hope and expectation" for the future of relations between Ouagadougou and Moscow.
According to the African minister, this hope is based on the fact that "Russia supports Burkina Faso in its fight against terrorism."
"For us, 2024 must be the year of the return to peace. And the return to peace means the return to growth," Traore told Sputnik Africa.
In the diplomat's estimation, Ouagadougou and Moscow will have to take "two steps" together in 2024.
"The first is the emergency and humanitarian phase, which we are currently tackling with Russia's support. And this stage should open the door to a new dynamic, that of the economy, that of creating the conditions in which the two economies can share their achievements with each other and allow us to move forward," hoped the head of Burkina Faso's diplomacy.
Contacts between the two countries are already multiplying. Russia has just resumed the work of its embassy in Ouagadougou after a 31-year hiatus. In addition, Russia's deputy defense minister, Yunus-bek Evkurov, visited Burkina Faso this year to strengthen military cooperation.