"We will continue intensive military, military-technical cooperation, [Congolese] President [Denis] Sassou Nguesso confirmed this, in the interests of strengthening the defense capability of the Republic of the Congo," Lavrov said at a joint press conference with his Congolese counterpart, Jean-Claude Gakosso.
Lavrov also said that they had discussed the schedule of high-level meetings with Congolese counterparts.
The Republic of the Congo's Foreign Minister Jean-Claude Gakosso promised to come on a return visit to Russia, the Russian top diplomat noted.
Moreover, Russia’s actions in Ukraine are "understood" by the president of Congo, the minister emphasized.
“We appreciate the objective, balanced position that the Republic of Congo takes on the events related to Ukrainian issue,” he said.
Furthermore, Gakosso emphasized that peace negotiations regarding Ukraine must include Russia. He added that "ignoring the fact that Russia possesses nuclear weapons" is not an option.
Countries that send weapons to Ukraine are "not supporters of peace"; they are "pushing" the world towards a global conflict, he noted.
During the press conference, Gakosso also mentioned that he lived in Donbass for about a year, adding that he even "learned a bit of Ukrainian."
"Therefore, it seems to me that what is happening in Ukraine is a real civil war," Gakosso said.
Additionally, Moscow fully supports the initiative to hold an all-Libyan conference to facilitate a settlement in the country, proposed by the Congolese president, Lavrov said.
"We fully support President Sassou Nguesso's initiative to prepare a truly all-Libyan conference and will use our contacts with various Libyan forces to rally them on that very platform," Lavrov said.
Sergey Lavrov's African tour began with his visit to the Republic of Guinea on Monday, then he arrived in the Republic of the Congo. He last visited Congo in July 2022.
The Republic of the Congo is armed with armored cars, helicopters, and rocket artillery that were manufactured in the Soviet Union and Russia. A contract to send Russian military experts to the Republic of Congo to train and support the Congolese forces in the operation, maintenance, and repair of military and special equipment previously supplied to the country was signed in May 2019 by the Russian Ministry of Defense and the Congolese military department.