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Russia-Africa Summit Day Two: Putin and African leaders address Kremlin gathering

Leaders are set to adopt a three-year cooperation plan before the Russian president holds a new round of bilateral talks

Published 29 Oct, 2026 06:37 | Updated 29 Oct, 2026 09:46

Russia-Africa Summit Day Two: Putin and African leaders address Kremlin gathering

Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting African leaders and government delegations at the Kremlin for the second day of the Russia-Africa Summit, where another round of presidential talks is on the agenda.

Putin and African Union chair Evariste Ndayishimiye will open the first session, focused on international affairs and Africa’s growing global role. A working breakfast will give other delegation heads the floor and a group photograph will precede two plenary sessions in the Grand Kremlin Palace’s Alexander Hall.

The gathering is expected to conclude with a declaration on the wider partnership, a separate text on artificial intelligence, and a cooperation action plan for 2027-2029. A package of 33 agreements is also expected to be signed. Putin and Ndayishimiye will then brief the media before the Russian president holds bilateral talks with counterparts from Burundi, Namibia, Kenya, Sudan, Madagascar, and Zimbabwe.

At Wednesday’s opening economic forum proposals to expand trade, strengthen financial independence, and turn Africa’s resources into local industrial growth were submitted. Putin backed reform of the IMF and World Bank, called for a re-doubling of Russia-Africa trade to $50 billion, and offered to share Russian digital technologies. He also announced the extension of Russia’s epidemic-control program in Africa until 2029.

RT is following Thursday’s speeches, signings, and talks at the Kremlin, bringing you announcements, reactions, and footage from Moscow.

29 October 2026
09:44 GMT
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov describes the attempted mass Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow during the Russia-Africa Summit as “very strange.”
“This is an event of global significance taking place in Russia’s capital,” he tells Vesti. “Thank God, our air-defense systems are working effectively.”
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin reported that 613 drones headed toward the city’s region overnight, with most intercepted farther away and 231 destroyed on the approaches to Moscow. Domodedovo, Vnukovo, and Zhukovsky airports temporarily restricted operations, lifting the measures at 6:45 AM Moscow time.
09:24 GMT
Russia has military and military-technical cooperation agreements with 45 African countries, Putin announces, outlining Moscow’s support for stability, security, and defense capabilities across the continent.
“African military personnel and law enforcement officers are being trained at Russian educational institutions,” he notes.
09:21 GMT
Putin welcomes the UN’s March decision to recognize the transatlantic slave trade as “the gravest crime against humanity.” The Ghana-led resolution passed with 123 votes in favor. The US, Israel and Argentina voted against it, while all EU member states and the UK were among 52 countries that abstained.
Putin also points to Moscow’s support for establishing December 14 as International Day against Colonialism, a designation approved by the UN General Assembly last December.
© Sputnik/Maksim Blinov
09:18 GMT
Russia has opened eight embassies in Africa since the 2023 summit, bringing its total on the continent to 48, Putin announces. Six Russian trade missions also cover 16 African countries.
The diplomatic expansion runs both ways. Botswana, Seychelles, and Togo plan to open embassies in Moscow “in the near future,” he adds, pledging support.
09:11 GMT
Russian fertilizer shipments to Africa have already exceeded 2.2 million metric tons this year, surpassing the roughly 1.5 million supplied throughout 2025, Putin reports.
According to him, Russia also delivered more than 18 million metric tons of grain last year and another 13 million in the first nine months of 2026.
© Sputnik/Yuri Kochetkov
09:09 GMT
Moscow supports greater African representation in the UN Security Council and international financial institutions, Putin says, noting that Russia and countries across the continent hold similar or identical positions on many major global issues.
“We stand for dialogue on an equal footing and for taking the interests of all states into account.”
08:56 GMT
Reliable, uninterrupted payment channels in national currencies are helping expand Russia-Africa trade and investment, Putin stresses. He says the ruble now accounts for up to 85% of commercial transactions between the two sides.
READ MORE: From Pushkin’s ancestor to Mandela’s envoys: The untold story of Russia-Africa ties

“All this allows us to protect our economic exchanges from external influence,” he adds.
08:47 GMT
Russia and Africa are “natural allies in building a multipolar, genuinely democratic world order,” Putin says, highlighting their strong bonds of friendship and close partnership.
Trade with African countries exceeded $27 billion last year, he adds, rising by 50% since the previous summit in 2023.
08:46 GMT
The summit brings together representatives of almost every African country and leading regional organizations, Putin notes.
“I am convinced that this clearly demonstrates Africa’s sincere desire to strengthen and further advance cooperation with Russia,” he adds.
08:30 GMT
The plenary session of the third Russia-Africa Summit is underway in Moscow, bringing together Russian and African leaders to discuss cooperation across key sectors.

29 October 2026
06:52 GMT
Russia-Ethiopia trade exceeded $1.3 billion in January–September, “more than twice the figure for the whole of 2025,” Putin noted during talks with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Wednesday.
Abiy urged both sides to make nuclear cooperation “a priority area of our work,” highlighting financing, specialist training and access to medical isotopes. Earlier in the day, the prime minister announced delivery of Ethiopia’s first 12 Russian Su-35 fighter jets, with four S-400 air-defense batteries also due.
06:56 GMT
Kenyan President William Ruto has described Russia-Africa ties as rooted in support for independence struggles and scientific, educational, and technical development, and urged a “stronger economic and developmental foundation” for the partnership.
Africa is preparing to “claim its rightful place in the markets, factories, laboratories, research institutions and innovation centres of the world where the future of the global economy is being created,” he wrote on X following Wednesday’s plenary session.
The Russia-Africa relationship is rooted in a history of engagement, including Russia’s contribution to Africa’s struggles for independence and the development of scientific, educational and technical capabilities in several African countries. We have an opportunity to build on that history by giving our partnership a stronger economic and developmental foundation as Africa readies itself to claim its rightful place in the markets, factories, laboratories, research institutions and innovation centres of the world where the future of the global economy is being created.
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) October 28, 2026
07:16 GMT
African leaders and government delegations are arriving at the Grand Kremlin Palace for the summit’s final day. Delegations from 48 African countries are participating, including 22 led by heads of state, alongside representatives of continental and regional organizations.
07:24 GMT
More than 3,500 people from 74 countries are participating in the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, presidential adviser and organizing committee executive secretary Anton Kobyakov has reported. He described the gathering as drawing worldwide attention and delivering strong results.
07:34 GMT
The West is using Ukrainian mercenaries in Africa to pursue its colonial objectives on the continent, Kobyakov alleged during a briefing at the Russia-Africa Media Forum. His remarks echo accusations by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger that Ukraine supports armed groups in the Sahel, which the three countries brought before the UN Security Council in August 2024.
07:36 GMT
Russia is helping African nations resist Western neocolonialism, presidential adviser and organizing committee executive secretary Anton Kobyakov has said on the sidelines of day two of the summit.
07:57 GMT
Russian mobile laboratories are already operating in 11 African countries, Anna Popova, the head of Russian health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, has said at the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum.
“We share our methods, and our mobile laboratories, which we have developed and which are now operating in many countries around the world,” Popova said, adding that the laboratories demonstrate the effectiveness of Russia’s approach.
08:02 GMT
Africa needs partnerships based on mutual benefit rather than apologies from Western countries for their colonial past, Raymond Matlala, chairman of South Africa’s BRICS Youth Association, has told RT on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Media Forum in Moscow.
“I’m not hopeful about them apologizing. Africa needs a mutual partner,” Matlala said.
He accused Western countries of exploiting Africa and stressed the need for genuine partnerships that support the continent’s development.
08:10 GMT
Russia aims to strengthen its transport and logistics presence in Africa as the continent becomes a hub linking Europe and the Global South, presidential adviser Igor Levitin has told the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum.
He adds that Moscow sees consolidating its presence on the continent as a “strategic direction” for transport logistics.
08:11 GMT
Russian President Vladimir Putin has begun his speech at the plenary session.
He stresses that Russian companies invest in African countries and treat their partners with honesty and respect rather than adopting a colonial approach.