Moscow is ready to provide assistance to Senegal and other African states in reinforcing their defense capabilities and counterterrorism readiness of their armed forces, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.
"Russia is ready to assist Senegal and other African countries in strengthening their defense capabilities and improving the anti-terrorist readiness of the armed forces and special services," Lavrov told a joint press conference after his meeting with Senegalese Foreign Minister Yassine Fall.
On July 30, the Senenews media outlet reported that the authorities of Mali and Mauritania were investigating the involvement of Ukrainian military instructors in the year-long conflict in Mali on the side of the rebels. Earlier in the same day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the fact that Ukraine was cooperating with terrorists from the Sahel region was not surprising. Moscow actively drew the attention of the international community to such actions by Kiev.
In early August, nine Senegalese public organizations said in a statement that a video published by Ukrainian defense intelligence spokesman Andriy Yusov confirmed Kiev's involvement in the attack on the Russian private military company Wagner Group in Mali.
This was another confirmation of Kiev's support for armed groups. They also condemned Ukraine for training militants in Africa and called on the international community to hold Kiev accountable.
Another way of cooperating between the countries is that Russia and Senegal are currently negotiating direct supplies of fertilizers, flour, and wheat, which are now being delivered via intermediaries, making the process less efficient, the Russian Foreign Minister said.
During the talks, the parties exchanged opinions on the main areas of bilateral cooperation, emphasizing the development of trade and economic ties, the top Russian diplomat said.
"We agreed to take additional steps to implement promising joint projects in geological exploration, development of mineral resources, energy, infrastructure, fisheries, information and communication technologies," Lavrov said.
Top Russian and Senegalese diplomats agreed to accelerate the establishment of an intergovernmental trade and economic commission, Lavrov added.
Various Russian investors are contributing to Africa's development, Fall said during the press conference.
“The Kamaz enterprise will also be located in Senegal in the near future… A lot of Kamaz products have been supplied to Senegal. As far as our cooperation with Kamaz is concerned, Russia is fully contributing to this cooperation. Many Russian companies will cooperate with Senegalese entrepreneurs who will open opportunities for Senegal,” the top Senegalese diplomat said.
In June, Russian Ambassador to Senegal Dmitry Kurakov told Sputnik that Russia and Senegal were planning to create a commission on economic cooperation, which can help increase the bilateral trade.
Moreover, the agreements between the two nations also touched on the topic of education. The Russian foreign minister announced that the number of scholarships for Senegalese students in Russian universities has increased from 75 to 102 for the new academic year. He noted the growing interest among Senegalese youth in learning Russian and mentioned plans to expand language learning opportunities at educational institutions in Senegal.
"Currently, 50 schools in 13 provinces of Senegal teach Russian to 6,600 students, and this number is expected to grow," the minister said.
Considering the geopolitical situations, Senegal's foreign minister affirmed Dakar's strong ties with Sahel countries, emphasizing shared history and commitment to maintaining healthy relations regardless of these countries' choices.
She emphasized Senegal's neutral stance on the Ukrainian crisis, calling for dialogue and negotiations for resolution, a stance shared by the African Union.