Supporting Ukraine in war with Russia opens unprecedented window of opportunity for Africa - Kuleba

Such conviction was expressed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba of Ukraine, who answered the questions of an Ukrinform correspondent at a briefing on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

"Supporting Ukraine in the war against Russia opened an unprecedented window of opportunity for African nations because the fight for the opinion of the Global South, which unfolded last year, brought African nations first and foremost on the list of foreign policy priorities of many states. In the long run, without this war for Ukraine, which is being waged by Ukraine and its partners on the diplomatic battlefield, the countries of the Global South would not be in the focus," the minister said.

The minister recalled that over the past year, President Zelensky spoke with an unprecedented number of African leaders, while the first Ukraine visit of an African leader (Guinea-Bissau) took place. Kuleba himself toured Africa, where he spoke with many ministers, launched several important projects, as well as the Grain from Ukraine initiative, which will continue to develop.

"The renaissance in Ukrainian-African relations began in 2022. This year, we will open embassies in Africa, we will not lose momentum in terms of the number of contacts," said the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He noted that this work is yielding results, which is also evident from the way some countries' positions in the UN General Assembly are shifting. Some countries simply need to be talked to, they lack attention, Kuleba added.

There is a big game going on right now, in addition to the fight for economic interests, there is a big battle for political ones. The price of voting in the UN General Assembly for resolutions has increased significantly, noted the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

The anniversary of the full-scale invasion is approaching, as is the meeting of the UNGA. Therefore, the Ukrainian side is working with other countries to support relevant decisions, primarily regarding President Zelensky's Peace Formula. Kuleba took advantage of his stay in Munich to hold meetings with as many colleagues as possible, in particular, from regions outside the Euro-Atlantic space, including Asia and Africa.