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Burkina Faso 'very positive' toward Russians, to host Putin prize ceremony — Russian envoy

Alexey Saltykov added that Ouagadougou views Moscow as a reliable partner that seeks to develop bilateral relations based on the principles of the United Nations Charter

NAIROBI, December 28. /TASS/. Burkina Faso takes a very positive attitude toward Russians in general and Russian President Vladimir Putin in particular, Russian Ambassador to Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso Alexey Saltykov said in an interview with TASS.

"The Burkinabe leadership and overall public and ordinary citizens have a very positive, mostly friendly attitude [toward Russians and Putin]. We can feel it every day here," Saltykov said, adding that Ouagadougou views Moscow as a reliable partner that seeks to develop bilateral relations based on the principles of the United Nations Charter, namely, equality, respect and non-interference in the internal affairs of sovereign nations.

Commenting on an initiative by an Ivorian non-profit organization to establish a prize named in honor of Putin to be awarded to African political figures and activists for their contribution to "the liberation struggle of the African peoples," the Russian envoy said that the idea merits support, just like all such initiatives that accentuate the role of the Russian leader in historical processes.

"This is an exclusively domestic African initiative, [driven] by their desire to highlight the role that the Russian president plays in global politics, but it is worth supporting in every possible way," the diplomat added.

Later on Thursday, the Burkinabe capital of Ouagadougou will play host to a formal ceremony for presenting an international award named in honor of Putin for recipients’ contributions to "the liberation struggle of the African peoples." The "Vladimir Putin International Prize" is the brainchild of Ivorian writer Sylvain Takoue, who is a member of Total Support for Vladimir Putin in Africa (SOTOVPOA), an Ivory Coast-based civil society organization established in collaboration with counterparts in Burkina Faso.

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