JOHANNESBURG — It was one of the Kremlin’s biggest diplomatic showpieces since the invasion of Ukraine nearly 18 months ago, but it’s not clear that Russian President Vladimir Putin made much headway after welcoming a slew of African leaders to a highly touted summit in St. Petersburg last week.
Mr. Putin appeared no closer to winning fresh support for his invasion of Ukraine as the summit wound down over the weekend. Even the guest list told a disappointing tale. The inaugural summit Mr. Putin staged in Sochi in 2019, before the Ukraine war, attracted 43 African heads of government. This year, just 17 made the trip.
Still, South Africa and Egypt had their presidents at the table as Russia, China and Western nations heat up competition for friends and influence on the continent. The leaders of Kenya and Nigeria declined their invitations, as did President George Weah of Liberia, who has repeatedly spoken against the Ukraine invasion.
The disappointing turnout stung.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov blamed the unimpressive turnout on “unconcealed brazen interference” by the U.S., France and their NATO allies via embassies across Africa. The West “put pressure on the leadership of these countries in order to prevent their active participation in this forum,” Mr. Peskov said.
The U.S. and its allies have imposed sanctions on Moscow for invading Ukraine, and nonaligned nations are fiercely bidding to condemn the war.
One of the missions of the St. Petersburg summit was to restart the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Mr. Putin withdrew from the deal, which allowed for the transport of Ukrainian corn and wheat to Africa via Black Sea ports.
In his opening speech Thursday, Mr. Putin said Russia would supply free grain to some of the continent’s poorest nations, including Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, the Central African Republic and Eritrea. All the named recipients are under authoritarian rule. Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group props up Mali and the Central African Republic. The United States, Canada and much of Europe did not recognize Zimbabwe’s 2018 elections after observers noted irregularities and intimidation of voters.
Zimbabwe goes to the polls again on Aug. 23, and police have banned most rallies for the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change. Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa has been vocal in his support of Mr. Putin, and at the summit pledged “solid collaboration between our two countries” and “solidarity with your special operation in Ukraine.”
Despite high levels of hunger and poverty at home, Mr. Mnangagwa chartered a jet to carry him and his entourage to St. Petersburg at a cost of $700,000, South African newspapers reported. Mr. Putin presented him with the gift of a Russian helicopter.
In Soviet days, Angola was viewed as a client-state of Moscow and its government was kept in power only with the help of Cuban troops. The former Portuguese colony now votes against Russia at the United Nations.
Struggling for a foothold
Mr. Putin told delegates that the summit would “boost our political and humanitarian partnership for many years to come,” and he praised Africa for “asserting itself more and more confidently.” China, France, Britain, India and the United States have strong business ties, but Moscow has struggled to gain a foothold. U.S. trade with South Africa alone is close to Russia’s tally with the entire continent.
The Ukraine war has closed off diplomatic options for Russia, and the summit did little to address the situation, at least publicly, with key countries such as South Africa.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa led a peace mission to Kyiv and Moscow in June in an effort to end the war in Ukraine, but his proposal was largely ignored. Mr. Putin was scheduled to attend a Johannesburg summit of rising powers in August, but he canceled when it became clear that the South African government may have been obligated to arrest him under a warrant from the International Criminal Court at The Hague.
Unstable nations that have fallen out of favor with the West over coups, wars and human rights abuses may offer Moscow some opportunities.
Amnesty International has ranked Eritrea, on the Horn of Africa, as one of the most repressive states in the world. Military regimes in Burkina Faso and Niger have yet to show their allegiances. If Zimbabwe’s elections turn violent or face legitimacy questions, a cold shoulder from the U.S. and Europe could boost Russia’s diplomatic presence.
Photos from Mr. Putin’s summit show Russian weapons on display. Russia remains a key supplier of arms for African countries.
Opinion polls across Africa show little support for Moscow, and Mr. Putin’s reluctance to travel reduces the likelihood that he will make reciprocal visits to any of the attending nations.
In St. Petersburg, Mr. Ramaphosa said Africa stood ready to host and adjudicate a peace between Russia and Ukraine, but both sides have put more weapons and troops in the field in recent days, suggesting that neither is prepared to back down.
Mr. Putin will have to wait for the next U.N. motion on the war to see whether any African delegates vote in his favor.
Mr. Putin’s outreach is not a surprise. African nations make up the largest voting bloc at the United Nations and have repeatedly split their votes on General Assembly resolutions criticizing Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
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