Kuleba starts fourth tour of African countries

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service said this in a statement, Ukrinform reports.

"During August 4-8, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba will pay visits to Malawi, Zambia and Mauritius," the statement reads.

The ministry said that Ukraine's foreign minister would visit all three countries for the first time in history. The minister's fourth African tour aims to continue building relations with African countries.

In Lilongwe, Lusaka and Port Louis, Kuleba will hold talks with state leaders, foreign ministers, business executives and cultural workers.

According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, the meetings will focus on the development of bilateral relations based on mutual respect and interests. One of the key topics will be the participation of African states in global efforts to restore a just peace for Ukraine and the world.

The special emphasis of Kuleba's talks in Malawi will be the important role of Ukraine in ensuring food security: the exchange of experience and technologies in the field of agriculture and the humanitarian program Grain from Ukraine.

In Zambia, Kuleba will discuss the development of bilateral relations, political dialogue and cooperation within international organizations.

In Mauritius, one of the most successful economies in Africa, the special topic of the meetings will be the attraction of investments and the participation of Mauritian businesses in the reconstruction and restoration of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.

Ukraine approved an Africa Strategy in January 2022. As part of the strategy, the President of Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and parliamentary diplomacy significantly intensified contacts with African countries.

The Ukrainian foreign minister made his first African tour in October 2022 (Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Kenya) and the second in May 2023 (Morocco, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Mozambique and Nigeria).

Kuleba's third African tour took place in the summer of 2023, when he visited Equatorial Guinea and Liberia.