MOSCOW, December 17. /TASS/. Africa is moving to the forefront of global politics, becoming a full-fledged player in a polycentric world, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said in an interview with TASS.

"Today, Africa is emerging as a key player in the new polycentric world order that is taking shape before our eyes. The African Union is the key coordinating center for these processes, which include forming an African security architecture, developing political and socio-economic cooperation, and developing Africa's role in the system of international relations," the senior diplomat said.

According to him, "building a mutually beneficial partnership with it is a foreign policy priority for Russia, ensuring the comprehensiveness and comprehensiveness of our relations with Africa, complementing and enriching bilateral ties with each of the countries on the continent." "The structural changes that have taken place in the Russian Foreign Ministry are also linked to the resolution of these important tasks. At the beginning of 2025, a specialized Department for Partnership with Africa was created," the deputy foreign minister added.

The senior diplomat recalled that Russia's cooperation with the African Union dates back to the decolonization of Africa. According to Vershinin, the USSR "played a crucial role in dismantling the colonial system and helped independent African countries establish the foundations of statehood, develop their national economies, and train qualified personnel."

The deputy foreign minister noted that Russia's ties with the African Union are growing today based on the 2019 Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Russian Federation and the African Union on the basis of relations and cooperation, as well as the 2023 Russia-African Union Action Plan for 2023-2026, adopted in St. Petersburg.

"We maintain dialogue with African Union members on various aspects of the bilateral, international, and regional agenda. Relevant contacts with the leadership of the African Union Commission took place during the celebrations for the 80th anniversary of Victory Day in Moscow and the regular session of the UN General Assembly in New York," Vershinin recalled. He added that relations between Russia and the African Union are gradually improving in knowledge-intensive areas such as the peaceful exploration of outer space, with cooperation between Roscosmos and the recently established African Space Agency, as well as the use of nuclear technologies to develop the national economies of African states.