(6 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ndjamena, Chad – 5 June 2024
1. Chadian Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah greets Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as he gets off plane
2. Various of Chadian and Russian officials leaving the airport to Ndjamena
3. Wide of Lavrov and Koulamallah at press conference
4. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister:
“It’s not peace that Western organizations would like to preserve (in Ukraine). Western principles are as follows: You have to choose, either you support Russia or you support us, and if you choose Russia, we will punish you. That’s the Western position. ”
5. Lavrov and Koulamallah taking seats for meeting
6. Close of Lavrov
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Bamako, Mali – 4 June 2024
7. Analyst Baba Dakono takes a seat in his office
8. SOUNDBITE (French) Baba Dakono, Malian political analyst:
"The security issue is a point of entry (for Russia in Africa), which enabled the Russian Federation to gain a foothold in the Central African Republic at the time, in Mali and other Sahelian countries, and the same dynamic in the Democratic Republic of Congo."
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ndjamena, Chad – 5 June 2024
9. Close of Lavrov
10. Officials’ cars leaving the airport
11. Various of Russia’s supporters outside the airport to welcome Lavrov
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Bamako, Mali – 4 June 2024
12. SOUNDBITE (French) Baba Dakono, Malian political analyst:
“What’s happening today in Eastern Europe (Ukraine) is that the West is gaining a foothold in what is considered Russia’s pre-eminent position in Eastern Europe, so the same feeling we’re seeing in the Sahel is that the Russians are gaining a foothold in what is considered the West’s pre-eminent position.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ndjamena, Chad – 5 June 2024
13. Lavrov and Koulamallah leaving after meeting
STORYLINE:
Russia’s foreign minister held talks with his Chadian counterpart on Wednesday as he wrapped up his whirlwind tour of West Africa in an attempt to fill a vacuum left by the region’s traditional Western partners.
Sergey Lavrov held talks with Chadian Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah in Ndjamena.
He was wrapping up a multiple-stop Africa tour which also included visits to Guinea, the Republic of Congo, and Burkina Faso.
Lavrov has visited Africa several times in recent years, as Russia has increased its cooperation with Sahelian states ruled by military juntas and looked to increase influence with other countries on the continent.
Chad has long been ruled by the Deby family, with former president Idriss Deby serving from 1991 until he was killed in a 2021 military offensive.
His son Mahamat Deby immediately took over.
Elections were held last month, which the younger Deby won by a large margin, continuing the family’s rule.
Many countries in the region have cut ties with the West, with Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger ordering French forces out and the U.S. agreeing to pull troops out of Niger by September.
Many of these countries have been battling Islamist insurgencies or other conflicts for years.
Baba Dakono, a Malian political analyst, said the insecurity in the region has served as an entry point for Russia in Africa.
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