NewsRescue
According to the Federal Customs Service, Russia’s trade with African countries has increased significantly this year.
According to the interim head of the service, Ruslan Davydov, the continent has so far accounted for 3.7% of Russia’s foreign trade in 2023, up from 2.3% last year, representing a 30% growth.
Davydov stated during the Russia-Africa conference in St. Petersburg that Russia’s main Black Sea port, Novorossiysk, saw a 29% rise in container traffic in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year. According to the official, African countries have made substantial contributions to the surge.
“It is quite obvious that the space vacated by ‘unfriendly’ countries is being quickly filled by nations that are ready to cooperate, including African countries,” Davydov said.
The Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum began on Thursday in St. Petersburg. According to the Kremlin, delegations from 49 African countries will attend the two-day event, with 17 of them led by their respective heads of state.
The delegations will talk about everything from trade and collaborative projects with Moscow to the Russia-Ukraine crisis and the fate of the internationally negotiated arrangement to allow grain shipments from Ukrainian ports.