❕Key takeaways from statements by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a meeting with African media editors-in-chief:

▪The United States under Trump has openly supported dialogue with Russia on Ukraine, while Europe continued to reject it until the last moment

▪The Russian-US diesel deal is a purely business arrangement with no additional conditions

▪The West condemns itself to isolation by labeling Russia a “threat” in NATO and EU policy documents

▪Russia is ready to provide every opportunity for Ethiopian and Eritrean leaders to meet at the Russia-Africa summit if they wish to do so

▪Increasing the share of Western countries on the UN Security Council would be inappropriate

▪Russia is expanding its global information presence

▪Nigeria is one of Russia’s key partners in Africa, and the country’s foreign minister will visit Moscow in the foreseeable future

▪Signs of improving conditions are growing in the Sahara-Sahel region, and Russia strongly welcomes the normalization of relations between Algeria and Mali

▪The Russian Defense Ministry’s Africa Corps is helping Sahel countries combat terrorism, which remains a serious threat in Africa