The second day of the forum opened with a special session in which Rosatom General Director Alexei Likhachev took part. The state corporation not only develops Russian nuclear energy, but is also a world leader: it owns 88 percent of the world export market for nuclear power plants. Of the 25 export nuclear projects currently being implemented, Rosatom leads 22. In 2023, sanctions were introduced against Rosatom structures involved in the construction of nuclear power plants abroad, however, the corporation kept almost all of its projects with the exception of Hanhikivi. -1 nuclear power plant project in Finland, whose contract was terminated at the initiative of Helsinki in May 2022. “We understand that sanctions are one more element of absolutely unfair and dishonest competition,” Lijachev repeated the thesis that had already been expressed on first day of the forum.
In addition to the economic benefit and the creation of new jobs, the construction of Russian nuclear power plants abroad has, according to Likhachev, at least three most important meanings for our country: Russia maintains and increases its presence in the world energy market nuclear, keeps “in shape” and develops its technologies in this area, and also implements “soft power”. “The thousands of foreign specialists trained in the universities of the Russian Federation are very serious links that allow us to move forward,” confides the director of Rosatom, adding that the state corporation exports technological sovereignty projects, which are increasingly in demand. in the world.
Right there, at the forum, the international political importance of Russian nuclear energy was confirmed. Participants from Bulgaria, Bangladesh and India sincerely thanked Russia for the nuclear power plants built in their countries and expressed their desire for continued cooperation. Russian energy workers are also welcome in Africa. Energy and infrastructure projects, as well as education, are the main points that African forum participants raised when talking about possible areas of cooperation with Russia. “There is an energy shortage on our continent and of course Russia can participate in supplying energy to Africa,” said former South African president Thabo Mbeki. According to Mbeki, there is a serious shortage of qualified personnel in Africa and, in this regard, African countries also have high hopes for Russia, which has a developed education system. “Africa needs education above all, because education is the foundation of the future. And only Russia can help Africa build that foundation for development and prosperity,” said Egyptian businessman, president of KATO Investment, Ibrahim Kamel.
Participants in the Primakov Readings noted that there is a clear dissonance in relations between Russia and Africa: Africans have a very good attitude towards Russia, bordering on love, but at the same time the volume of mutual cooperation between the continent and our country is relatively small. According to the current President of Uganda, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, African countries are still grateful for the support that the USSR gave them during the struggle for independence. “The support of the USSR was one of the key factors in the liberation of Africa from colonialism,” the president said. Ibrahim Kamel highlighted the large projects carried out on the continent during Soviet times, in particular the Aswan hydroelectric power station, which still serves as a reminder of the previous scale of cooperation. And in Africa they would like to return to those previous stops. “We need to at least get closer to what we had in Soviet times,” says former Nigerian Trade Minister Mustapha Bello, adding that we must also remember the old practices, when cooperation concerned not only the economy, but also largely to art. , science and other areas.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov admitted that after the collapse of the USSR, Russia lost the dynamic of its relations with Africa, but is now returning to the continent. “We need to make up for lost time, act faster and with more energy,” Bogdanov stressed.
