Anti-Western sentiment and rejection of dominance policies are actively spreading among African youth, and Russia needs to use this situation to strengthen friendly relations with countries on the continent. Vsevolod Tkachenko, director of the Africa Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said this on Thursday at a round table in the Federation Council on "Information Confrontation in the Context of Growing Geopolitical Tensions with the West. Results and Conclusions".
'A fast-growing and gaining audience is the youth, the African street, I would call the electronic street. We are talking about those young people who are becoming increasingly network-oriented. Here we witness a natural outburst of anti-Western sentiment, quite serious one, linked to the disapproval of the West's rejection of all decency in international affairs,' the diplomat said. According to Tkachenko, this part of society has a great influence on African elites as well.
According to the head of the Foreign Ministry Department, Russia should take advantage of this situation and build friendly relations with the African continent. 'Our work to counter neocolonialism is based on the fact that we bring them equality, respect and sometimes even preferential treatment. This means a lot,' Tkachenko said, noting that the West, meanwhile, 'continues to plunder Africa' and 'treats people without any respect'.
According to the diplomat, of the 54 African states, at least half have an explicit sympathy for Russia and a strong understanding of what it is doing and what is happening in the world. 'And the rest are latent sympathisers who are forced by their financial, economic and political dependence on Western countries to adjust to their narratives,' Tkachenko summarised, stressing that these countries as well are ready to support Russia if it succeeds in the international arena.
GSV "Russia- Islamic World"
Photo: Florstein/Creative Commons 4.0
Based on materials TASS