Putin backs G20 membership for African Union

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Moscow was counting on the African Union (AU) obtaining full membership in the influential Group of 20 nations (G20) as early as September, during its summit in New Delhi.

Putin made the pledge on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit on Thursday during a meeting with the Chairman of the African Union Azali Assoumani, and the Chairperson of the AU Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat.

“We support the [African] Union in joining to the work of leading international associations, and I recall that Russia was one of the first to respond positively to the proposal of the initiative to grant the African Union full-fledged membership in the G20,” the Russian president stated.

Putin said that Russia views the African Union “as a leading regional organization” that forms a modern security structure on the continent and creates conditions for ensuring Africa’s rightful place in the global economy

The African Union is made up of 55 African states which collectively make key political and economic decisions. South Africa is the only member of the G2O group of large economies.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in June that with Russia’s assistance, the issue of including the AU in the G20 would be resolved so that the continent could “fully participate in shaping the international agenda and global governance mechanisms.”

The idea of the AU taking a permanent seat at the G20 was first advocated by Senegalese President Macky Sall, who told the UN General Assembly in September 2022 that the move would mean “that Africa can, at last, be represented where decisions are taken that affect 1.4 billion Africans.”

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