Russia will further assist Africa in combating the spread of the coronavirus, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday at press conference after a meeting with foreign ministers of the African Union troika, comprising the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt and South Africa
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th July, 2020) Russia will further assist Africa in combating the spread of the coronavirus, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday at press conference after a meeting with foreign ministers of the African Union troika, comprising the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt and South Africa.
According to the minister, during the meeting, the participants paid special attention to humanitarian issues, with an emphasis on the spread of the coronavirus.
"It was agreed that we would continue efforts to assist in the fight against coronavirus, including through multilateral structures, both African and global," Lavrov said.
In particular, Moscow will promote decision-making, in which African countries are interested, within the UN, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, the diplomat said.
During the meeting, the ministers also noted the mutual interest in the continued collaboration on vaccine production against such pandemic threats, Lavrov said.
"Gratitude was expressed to the Russian Federation for the assistance that our respective agencies have already provided to African countries," Lavrov added.
The minister also said that Moscow had already received relevant requests for additional assistance from over 30 countries.
So far, Africa has confirmed as many as 382,563 cases of the coronavirus infection, including 7,139 fatalities, according to the World Health Organization.
