Reminiscing about the Russia-Africa Summit that took place back in July 2023, Uganda's Minister of Foreign Affairs highlighted potential areas of cooperation with Russia. Discussions between Russia and Uganda are underway, addressing joint ventures in the "oil industry", "nuclear energy" and "satellite technology", according to Gen. Odongo Jeje Abubakhar.
"Russia was upfront and willing to cooperate with various African countries in those endeavors [...] So for us, as a country, we think it was a very productive interaction with the Russian authorities," Minister Odongo says.
Having "an alternative to the existing SWIFT" would be "welcome", as, in that case, Africa would not be susceptible to "blackmail by [...] Western partners."
"You can use SWIFT, or you can use what the Russians are developing so that the blackmail, the politicization of financing is something we can deal with by having options," Uganda's Foreign Affairs Minister, says.
After Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger announced their withdrawal from ECOWAS, the future of the organization has been debated. If the three countries do withdraw, the move "will affect all sides", according to Dr. Omar Alieu Touray is the President of the ECOWAS Commission.
"Separation affects all sides. Unity is stronger than separation [...] Therefore, we all stand to benefit from being together. And this is what we are telling our people, that despite the difficulties we may be facing, let us work on those difficulties, move together," Dr. Touray explains.
To hear what else the regional leaders had to say, check out the entire episode of the AfroVerdict podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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