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The visit has been planned amid the looming food crisis sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the AU’s efforts to deescalate the tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
The chair of the African Union, Senegal’s President Macky Sall, has arrived in Russia.
President Sall and the president of the African Union, Moussa Faki Mahamat is scheduled to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Friday, 3rd June.
The visit has been planned amid the looming food crisis sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the AU’s efforts to deescalate the tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The agenda of the talks are expected to cover the de-escalation of the war in Ukraine, freeing stocks of cereals and fertilizers, and the lifting of the blockade from the Black Sea Ports according to a statement issued by the Press Agency. The war in Ukraine has worsened the food insecurity on the continent. Africa is a major buyer of wheat and cereals from Russia and Ukraine, while Russia is a major producer of fertilizers. The meeting with President Vladimir Putin is expected to take place in the south-western Russian city of Sochi.
Earlier this week, Sall virtually joined the European Council summit discussion on food security on June 5th and briefed the EU leaders about the alarming state of the food supply shortage in Africa which is exasperated by the blocking of exports from the Black Sea ports. He also pointed out that the decision to expel Russian banks from the SWIFT financial messaging system could hurt food supplies to the continent and appealed to the EU Ministers to find a suitable solution to the crisis..
The African Union has also agreed to receive a video address from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, though the date has to be announced soon.
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