Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's comment for the media following his talks with President of Burkina Faso Ibrahim Traoré, Ouagadougou, June 5, 2024
5 June 2024 15:26
1053-05-06-2024
President of Burkina Faso Ibrahim Traoré and I had a very useful discussion. President Traoré spoke about the measures his government was taking to address issues such as countering terrorism, restoring the territorial integrity of Burkina Faso, and promoting socioeconomic development.
We expressed our full support for these initiatives and assured President Traoré that we will continue to assist Burkina Faso in accordance with the agreements reached by our presidents in July 2023, during the second Russia-Africa Summit in St Petersburg. This includes new investments in the mining industry and increased cooperation in trade and the economy. We have also decided to expand and diversify our trade. As for agriculture, fertiliser production and pharmaceuticals, we will continue to assist Burkina Faso in addressing humanitarian problems by supplying food and Russian fertilisers. Additionally, there is a laboratory here that helps identify and combat infectious diseases.
We are further enhancing our defence and military-technical cooperation. We are supplying military products and will continue to do so more, to ensure Burkina Faso's defence capability and its ability to combat remaining terrorist groups.
The leadership of Burkina Faso highly values our cooperation in the sphere of personnel training. We proposed a significant increase in the number of scholarships offered by our government to Burkina Faso on an annual basis. Our proposals were well received, And we will be receiving suggestions on specific skills that are required for the development of Burkina Faso.
We reaffirmed our strong mutual commitment to continue close coordination in international affairs, above all at the United Nations. We appreciate President Traoré's impartial and fair stance on the events taking place in Ukraine as a result of the hybrid war unleashed by the West against the Russian Federation. Burkina Faso is among a large group of countries that refuse to support anti-Russia initiatives promoted by the West and the Kiev regime.
We consistently and firmly support the just demands of African countries that seek to eradicate the remnants of neocolonial practices continued by the former colonial powers.
President Ibrahim Traoré provided detailed information on the steps being taken by Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali to create and develop Alliance of Sahel States. We believe that this movement will play a stabilising role in the region.
The concept of the Alliance of Sahel States is based on the principle of African solutions to African problems. Africans no longer wish to receive any advice from former colonial powers.
I conveyed President Vladimir Putin's warm regards to President Ibrahim Traoré and reaffirmed Russia's readiness to continue engaging in political dialogue at the high and highest levels.
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