Raghida Dergham is the founder and executive chairwoman of the Beirut Institute, and a columnist for The National
July 30, 2023
The Russia-Africa summit held in Saint Petersburg on Thursday has served as a morale-booster for Moscow. The Kremlin gathered heads of state and officials representing several African countries in the second edition of the summit focused on bolstering Russia’s bilateral relations with the continent. However, the summit’s impact on the strategic balance of power will be limited, considering the global turmoil caused by the war in Ukraine has left the international order lost without direction.
One of the main concerns for the African leaders is Moscow’s bid to bypass western sanctions and western presence in Africa, given the American and European determination to crack down on any circumvention of their measures.
During the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin promised to provide free grain shipments in the coming months to six nations: Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Eritrea, Mali, Somalia and Zimbabwe. This move comes amid African concerns over Russia’s exit from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, a move Moscow attributed to western policies, as it accused the West of hindering the deal despite Russia’s commitment to it. The fact, however, is that it is Russia that refused to extend the agreement, which was sponsored by Turkey, triggering concerns of a global food crisis that would primarily affect Africa following the cessation of grain exports from Ukraine.
Moscow’s pitch at the summit did not include measures to protect African countries from sanctions imposed on Russia. Indeed, it is unable to provide such guarantees, given that the West would pursue and punish anyone who deals with Russia.
Supporters wave Niger's flags as they rally in support of the junta in front of the National Assembly in Niamey on Friday. AFP
Moscow seeks to showcase to the world that its 'special military operation' in Ukraine has not diminished its global standing
On Thursday, Mr Putin said: “Russia was one of the first countries to respond positively to the initiative to grant the African Union full membership in the G20. We expect this decision to be taken as early as September during the G20 summit in New Delhi.” The question, however, is whether the African Union’s membership will hold significance in the G20, due to the western alliance’s growing strength in recent months.
The tools with which the Russian government can exert influence in Africa are limited, too.
Some western governments have alleged that the private Wagner Group has played a crucial role in certain African countries on behalf of Moscow. If this is indeed the case, it is hard to say how much influence the militia will continue to wield following its mutinous advance towards Moscow in June.
Last week’s coup against Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum, who has been largely aligned with the West, will be followed with keen interest by all the stakeholders. This is particularly the case as the Sahel has for years been subjected to competition between Russia and the West. Niger, it is important to point out, is rich in uranium and, therefore, important for the French nuclear industry. Following the coup, the EU and France cut off financial support to the country, with the US threatening to do the same.
Moscow seeks to showcase to the world that its “special military operation” in Ukraine has not diminished its global standing. However, the reality of the war has forced it to reduce its global military and economic presence elsewhere.
As the war in Ukraine approaches the 500-day mark, 'The National' looks back at the conflict. All photos: AP
Ukrainian soldiers cover their ears to protect from Russian tank shelling in a shelter on the front line in the Zaporizhzhia region in July
A cemetery in evening sunlight near Lviv in July
Flooded streets in Kherson in June after the walls of the Kakhovka dam collapsed
Tetiana with her pets, Tsatsa and Chunya, in her house that was flooded when the Kakhovka dam in Kherson was breached
Young cadets sing the national anthem during a graduation ceremony at a cadet lyceum in Kyiv in June
Bakhmut in April, the site of the heaviest battles in the Donetsk region
A message on a mirror reads 'Ukraine will prevail' in a badly damaged school in Kharkiv in February
Ukrainian servicemen in position close to the border with Belarus in February
Hospital staff in Kherson with orphaned children at the regional hospital maternity ward in November 2022
A sniper unit aims at Russian positions in the Kherson region during an operation in November 2022
Ukrainian artillerymen fire at Russian positions near Bakhmut in November 2022
A Ukrainian serviceman near Oskil village in October 2022
Funeral workers carry the coffin of an unidentified civilian who died in the Bucha community during the Russian occupation period in February-March 2022
Cadets practise with gas masks in a bomb shelter on the first day of school at a cadet lyceum in Kyiv, Ukraine, in September
A young girl with her dog waves goodbye to her grandparents from an evacuation train leaving Pokrovsk in August 2022
A child looks up at a building destroyed during attacks in Irpin in May 2022
An elderly patient boards a medical evacuation train in Pokrovsk in May 2022
Nila Zelinska holds a doll belonging to her granddaughter that she found in her destroyed house in Potashnya, on the outskirts of Kyiv, in May 2022
Residents shelter in the city subway of Kharkiv in May 2022
Destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, April 2022
A family fleeing the village of Ruska Lozova in April 2022 arrive in their shrapnel-riddled car at a screening point in Kharkiv
Smoke fills the air after shelling in Odesa in April
Yehor, 7, with a wooden toy rifle next to destroyed Russian military vehicles near Chernihiv in April 2022
Security Service of Ukraine servicemen enter a building during an operation to arrest suspected Russian collaborators in Kharkiv in April 2022
A Ukrainian soldier during a pick-up game of football in Irpin in April 2022
The partially abandoned town of Chernobyl in April 2022
Ruslan Mishanin, 36, bids farewell to his nine-year-old daughter as the train with his family leaves Odesa for Poland in April
Halyna Falko, 52, talks to reporters in March 2022 while looking at the destruction caused to her house near Brovary after a Russian attack
Anti-tank barricades on a street in preparation for a possible Russian offensive in Odesa in March 2022
A man recovering items from a burning shop after a Russian attack in Kharkiv in March 2022
Ukrainians under a destroyed bridge as they as they cross the Irpin river on the outskirts of Kyiv in March 2022
In Syria, for example, Moscow’s overt role to keep the Assad regime in power has waned. Iran, Damascus’s other ally, is meanwhile putting its “soft diplomacy” to the test after its recent Chinese-brokered rapprochement with Saudi Arabia.
The US’s military build-up in Syria worries Russia. The risk of an aerial clash between American and Russian aircraft and drones is present but not imminent, as both parties are determined to avoid direct confrontation. However, they are also determined to assert their presence in Syrian airspace and on its territory, and the shoring up of American military presence in the country has led Moscow to consider the drawbacks of reducing its military footprint there.
Russian diplomacy is now attempting to reassert itself, as it feels the need to rally sympathetic voices in forums such as the UN. That is why the Russia-Africa summit is important for its government, not only because it was held on Russian soil but also because it sets the stage for the upcoming UN General Assembly in September.
Russia’s promises to its partners in Africa and elsewhere are sincere, but they are likely to collide with a bitter reality – that today, it is unable to provide expansive aid, weaponry and finances to its friends, as it once could, due to western sanctions.
While free grain shipments may provide temporary relief (if they are delivered within the coming months), the repercussions of exiting the Black Sea Grain Initiative, as well as the consequences of the Ukraine conflict, are far more significant than any short-term remedies.
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The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
