The president of Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, has agreed to personally attend the Third Russia-Africa Summit to be held in Russia this coming October. The announcement was made after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks with Abdoulaye Sabre Fadoul, Chad’s Minister of State and Minister for Foreign Affairs, during his visit to Chad’s capital, N’Djamena.
The visit to Chad was the sixth leg of Lavrov’s tour of Africa, which has taken him to Ethiopia, Niger, Mozambique, and Burundi. The tour has focused on enhancing bilateral economic, security, and political cooperation and on building for the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, October 28-29, which will be held along with the associated Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum. Lavrov announced that the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, is also expected to attend the Russia-Africa Summit.
In his meeting with his Chadian counterpart, Lavrov discussed “expanding trade, economic and investment ties, improving the bilateral legal framework, and advancing promising joint projects in areas such as geological exploration, mining, energy, agriculture and healthcare,” according to a statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The current tour is Lavrov’s third multi-national African tour, following the previous tours in 2018 and 2023, as Russia has been making an extraordinary effort to broaden ties with Africa.
