Mr Minister,
Friends,
We are sincerely grateful to you for accepting our invitation to participate in the first ministerial conference of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum, convened following last year’s second summit meeting between Russia and the countries of the African continent.
I believe that today we will be able to see what additional steps can be taken to deepen our traditionally friendly and mutually respectful ties, which are based on solidarity and shared understanding and are not subject to any opportunistic considerations.
We are pleased that the Embassy of the Russian Federation has resumed its work in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. There was a long pause after the early 1990s. We have now restored the functioning of our diplomatic mission. That will make it easier for us to communicate regularly. Let us move forward in a productive manner.