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West pressures African states not to participate in summit in Russia — envoy

Russian Ambassador-at-Large Oleg Ozerov did not specify which states have already confirmed their participation in the summit

MOSCOW, February 9. /TASS/. Western states pressure and blackmail African states in order to force their representatives not to take part in the Russia-Africa Summit, says Oleg Ozerov, Russian Ambassador-at-Large, Head of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum Secretariat.

"It would be wrong to say that African states are overjoyed by the pressure and blatant blackmailing that is being exerted [by the West]," Ozerov said during at an event in the Russian Foreign Ministry, dedicated to the Diplomatic Worker’s Day.

"We believe that African states are sovereign nations that enjoy independence, sovereignty and their own political will, and are quite capable of making a decision that meets their national interests," he added.

According to the diplomat, this pressure is apparent in the statements made by Western partners, including those visiting African states.

Ozerov did not specify which states have already confirmed their participation in the summit.

"This process is underway, we receive confirmations, agreements every day," he said, adding that it is too early to talk about the list of participants.

Earlier, the Roscongress Foundation announced that the second Russia-Africa summit and economic forum is planned to take place in St. Petersburg on July 26-29. The first event took place on October 22-24, 2019, in Sochi.