The resumption of activities of the Russian Embassy in Ouagadougou, first of all demonstrates the quality of bilateral relations between the two countries, the Russian Ambassador to Burkina Faso, Alexei Saltykov told Sputnik Africa.
Bilateral cooperation between the two nations has not stopped despite 31 years of physical absence of the Russian mission in the African country, thanks to the work of the Russian mission in Cote d'Ivoire's Abidjan city, the diplomat emphasized.
"Therefore, the Russian Embassy responds to the need to accelerate these relations which already have a great history, a long history dating back to the years of independence," he noted.
According to him, the resumption of activities "will give a positive impetus to the examination of files, projects, the dispatch of documents." "This will make the task of developing bilateral relations much, much easier," Saltykov assured.
The ambassador underlined that development of the relations between Moscow and Ouagadougou in 2024 will be focused on the implementation of the decisions taken by the Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Burkinabe interim leader, Ibrahim Traore, during their meeting in July 2023 on the sidelines of the second Russia-Africa Summit.
"Several areas were touched upon in the economic, military, political and humanitarian fields. [...] Now, the embassy will work to give impetus to ensure that these decisions lead to concrete results in bilateral relations," he concluded.
In July, Putin announced plans to resume the activities of Russian embassies in Burkina Faso and Equatorial Guinea in order to strengthen cooperation with African countries in all spheres. This decision was reaffirmed in August when Russian Prime Minister, Mikhail Mishustin, signed orders regarding the two diplomatic missions.