Russia President Putin Courts Kenya with Arms, Energy Deals in Meeting with Uhuru

Infrastructure, energy and military hardware are among the opportunities that Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta during the inaugural Russia-Africa Economic Forum in Sochi.

On the last day of the summit, Putin told Kenyatta and other African leaders that Russia is committed to boosting trade and investment deals with African countries. He termed the present level of trade cooperation between Moscow and Africa as “not enough”.

“We currently export to Africa $25 billion worth of food — which is more than we export in arms, at $15 billion. In the next four to five years, I think we should be able to double this trade, at least,” said Putin.

During the meeting, The Roscongress Foundation, one of the organizers of the summit, signed co-operation agreements with the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce, Daily Nation reported.

The agreements are aimed at establishing effective communication between the expert and business communities of the Russian Federation and Kenya. 

Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau earlier indicated that Kenya was eying deals in medicine, blue economy, aeronautical and space engineering among other sectors.

Presently, Kenya acquires a significant amount of its arms from Russia and has been eyeing its market for its bulk tea.

Last year, Kenya imported Sh22.37 billion worth of goods from Russia, an 8.16 percent growth compared to Sh20.68 billion in 2017, according to the Russian Export Centre.

On the other hand, Kenya’s exports to Russia stood at Sh12.85 billion last year.