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Panel Discussion at Russia–Africa Forum Says Cross-Party Cooperation Could Strengthen International Security amidst Geopolitical Instability

The panel discussion ‘International Security in Times of Geopolitical Instability: Cross-Party Cooperation’ opened the  ‘Integrated Security and Sovereign Development’ pillar of the business programme of the Russia–Africa Economic Forum on 27 July. The discussion was moderated by Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s International Affairs Committee Andrey Klimov. The speakers included Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council Konstantin Kosachyov, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, First Deputy Secretary General of the African National Congress (South Africa) Nomvula Mokonyane, Namibian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, and Director of the Africa Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Vsevolod Tkachenko, among others.

Klimov was the first to speak. “We will be hosting a very important event that was initiated by the United Russia party. It will be held in late October and will be about consolidating the forces that still want to stop neo-colonialism and its spread and removing this dangerous phenomenon from world history altogether. We hope to establish an informal, but global movement there, specifically against these practices of modern neo-colonialism. And the organizing committee, which was created on the basis of our strategic partners in the cross-party dialogue from all continents, is already working at the heart of this movement,” Klimov said.

The event participants agreed that there have been major changes in the current geopolitical realities, and threats to global security are growing. Meanwhile, the countries of the Global North continue to pursue their aggressive neo-colonial policy in Africa. The speakers discussed the need to build up cooperation between the political parties of Russia and Africa.

Mnangagwa, who is also chairman of the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front, noted: “Russia has played a huge role in our battle against imperialism and colonialism. This historical connection between Russia and Africa is a guiding principle for us in the fight against imperialism. We view Russia as a consistent ally. We have been under colonial oppression for several hundred years, and we have experience in dealing with it.”

Kosachyov said: “The time has come to start forming a new international of political parties. I am not afraid of this word. For the sake of discussion, an international of a multipolar world or an international for multipolarity that would include parties, regardless of their political platforms on matters concerning internal development. Maybe someone is in favour of the greater role of the state, someone for a smaller one. Perhaps someone is for raising taxes, someone is for lowering them. Maybe someone is for raising the retirement age, and someone wants to lower it. But these are all sovereign issues concerning each country’s internal development. Each political party can have its own point of view on these issues.”

Mokonyane stated: “South Africa and Russia are actively cooperating within the UN, G20, and BRICS, criticizing the unipolar world order, and are committed to building a multipolar world. These ideas are the cornerstone of our desire for international cooperation. We seek to live in a world based on mutual respect, from which everyone benefits. The African National Congress respects the UN and its charter as the basis of international law, but we call for the reform of global institutions to avoid a unipolar world where decisions are made by one country.”

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said: “The [South-West Africa People's Organization] party and the people of Namibia believe in multipolarity, and we understand the importance of working together. With the help of many freedom-loving countries, we have been able to achieve independence. One of the key issues for achieving international peace amidst geopolitical instability is cross-party cooperation, because political parties are institutions that reflect the aspirations of the people better than any other organizations, so it is crucial to develop political cooperation in order to establish coordination between peoples and international organizations and meet the challenges needed for peace and stability all together.”

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“We highly value the results of our joint work at the summit. I am sure the achieved results are creating a good foundation for further deepening the Russia-Africa partnership in the interests of our nations’ prosperity and wellbeing.”

President of the Russian Federation
Vladimir Putin

The Russia–Africa Summit, which is taking place in Sochi on 23–24 October 2019, encapsulates the historically friendly relations between the African continent and the Russian Federation. This Summit carries great significance as it is the first of its kind to emerge during a period of major global and international transformations. In response to the aspirations of the people it is representing, the Summit intends to build a comprehensive framework for expanding Russian–African relations into broader horizons of joint cooperation across different fields.

The African nations and Russia share a common understanding of international relations, based on the principles of respect for the rule of international law, equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. Both sides affirm their commitment to support multilateral actions to oppose new international threats, be they terrorism and extremism in all their forms, or declining growth rates. The two sides share a firm conviction regarding the importance of developing trade flows and supporting mutual investment in such a way as to ensure security, peace and development for the African and Russian people.

African countries have huge potential and opportunities that will allow them, once efforts to streamline their economies have been achieved, to emerge as real global players. In recent years, the nations of this continent have achieved major successes spanning the political, economic, social and administrative spheres. Africa has flourished in terms of growth over the past decade, reaching a continent-wide growth rate of 3.55% in 2018.

The African Union Summit, which was held in Niger in July 2019, continued the efforts of the African countries and saw the African Continental Free Trade Agreement come into force, along with its operational instruments. The agreement is one of the key objectives of Agenda 2063, an African development strategy that has been created to address the African people’s desire for prosperity and decent living standards.

These successes are opening up wide-ranging prospects for cooperation between African countries and the Russian Federation, and confirm the determination of African governments and their people to cooperate with multiple partners in order to establish mutually beneficial relations.

With this in mind, we express our hopes that the Russia–Africa Summit will help in the establishment of constructive strategic relations, based on partnership between two sides across various fields, and in the service of fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of the African people and their friends in Russia.

President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abdelfattah ALSISI