Russia plans to open four more embassies in African countries to increase its influence

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced preparations to open four more embassies in African countries to increase Russia’s political and ideological influence in the region.

According to Ukrinform, the Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine reported this on Telegram.

“Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced preparations to open four new embassies in African countries. In total, Moscow already has 45 diplomatic missions in Africa and plans to cover the entire continent,” the statement reads.

As noted, the expansion of the diplomatic network is occurring alongside the buildup of political and ideological influence. Russia is actively promoting anti-Western narratives, particularly rhetoric about the “struggle against Western colonialism,” positioning itself as an alternative partner for African countries. At the same time, Russia’s presence has clearly pragmatic goals. These include forming a bloc of states loyal to Moscow that can support its positions on international platforms, as well as expanding opportunities to circumvent Western sanctions.

The Center for Countering Disinformation emphasized that Russia is also interested in Africa as a resource base: The Kremlin is seeking access to mineral resources and, at the same time, is stepping up its recruitment of citizens from African countries to participate in the war against Ukraine. In other words, behind the propaganda about “friendship” and “anti-colonialism” lies the distinctly utilitarian nature of the Kremlin’s interest in Africa.

As reported by Ukrinform, Russia is expanding the variety of methods to circumvent sanctions by routing some of its international payments through cryptocurrency channels via African countries.

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