The panel discussion will focus on the challenges of inter-party cooperation aimed at strengthening international security amidst geopolitical instability

On 27 July, the Integrated Security and Sovereign Development block of the business programme of the Second Russia–Africa Summit and Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum will start with a panel discussion titled International Security in Times of Geopolitical Instability: Cross-Party Cooperation.

 

The moderator will be Andrey Klimov, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation for International Affairs.

 

Among the speakers will be Konstantin Kosachev, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Sophia Shaningwa, Secretary-General of the South West Africa People's Organization, Steeve Nzegho Dieko, Secretary General of the Gabonese Democratic Party, Aristide Ngakosso Ngama, Permanent Secretary in Charge of Defence and Security and Member of the Political Bureau of the Congolese Labor Party of the Republic of the Congo, and others.

 

In the highly turbulent world of today, where the old geopolitical reality has been shattered, and the new one has yet to take shape, threats to global security are on the rise. These threats span from military conflicts to food shortages, energy crises, uncontrolled migration flows, and the actions of criminal terrorist groups. The African continent, in particular, is gaining more prominence on the world's political map. Unfortunately, the countries of the “global North” continue to pursue aggressive neo-colonial policies in Africa, posing significant challenges to the countries of the “global South”. Understanding the extent of these threats, their implementation, the resulting consequences, and the strategies to counter them while promoting constructive global development will be the central focus of our discussion.

 

“Our partners and I have ongoing confidential meetings, conversations, and exchanges of opinions,” said Andrey Klimov, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation for International Affairs. “Colleagues from African countries expect that the Russia–Africa Summit will add a party format in addition to the political and economic dimensions. We are currently working on the design of this party format. And I hope that we will succeed.”

 

The panel discussion will start at 09:00 in pavilion G, conference hall G7.

 

The Second Summit and the Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum are organized by the Roscongress Foundation.

 

Event website: summitafrica.ru/en

“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