Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s opening remarks at a meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Rwanda Olivier Nduhungirehe on the sidelines of the First Ministerial Conference of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum, Sochi, November 9, 2024

Mr Minister,

Dear friend,

Colleagues.

Thank you for joining the First Ministerial Conference of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum. The decision to hold this conference was made at the Second Russia-Africa Summit, held in St Petersburg in 2023, where Rwanda was represented by its Minister of Foreign Affairs.  Rwandan President Paul Kagame attended the First Russia-Africa Summit in 2019 and held a productive meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin there.

I hope that today we can review the progress on the tasks set by our presidents regarding our bilateral agenda, as well as regional and international issues, including those related to the UN and the situation in Africa. We will also explore approaches to resolving ongoing crises and conflicts, and we look forward to hearing your insights and assessments.

We are eager to listen to your assessments.