Russia, Republic of the Congo to Agree on Oil Pipeline Construction, Russian Envoy Says

Russia is expected to host delegations from most African countries during the second Russia-Africa Summit, which is set to take place in Saint Petersburg, Russia in July 2023. The Republic of the Congo and Russia are planning economic and cultural exchange programs to be realized ahead of the summit.

Russia and the Republic of the Congo are developing a project to create a petroleum product pipeline between the largest cities of the Congo Republic – Pointe Noire and the capital Brazzaville, Russian Ambassador to the Republic of the Congo Georgy Chepik said. The ambassador outlined that an agreement on the pipeline construction is expected to be signed before the upcoming Russia-Africa Summit.

The diplomat stated that the decision to build the pipeline was made during the sixth intergovernmental trade and economic commission, held in September 2022.

According to the ambassador, Russia's ZNGS PROMETEY pipeline construction, repair, and maintenance company has showed interest in the project.

"Most likely, it [the company] will be figured in this intergovernmental agreement," the ambassador stated.

The head of the Russian diplomatic mission also drew attention to the fact that LUKOIL, which has been operating in the African country since 2019, is the leader in the development of economic relations between Russia and the Republic of the Congo.

"This is a very important, significant presence for us. [...] LUKOIL is now our most significant economic presence here," Chepik stressed.

The envoy also noted that in anticipation of the second Russia-Africa Summit, the two countries are working on concluding several bilateral agreements in the trade, economic, and cultural spheres, Georgy Chepik said.

"We are hammering out several documents, including trade agreements, agreements on the use of funds received to repay the Republic of the Congo's debt, a pact on maritime transportation, and a deal on the mutual recognition of education and qualifications," Georgy Chepik said.

According to the head of the Russian diplomatic mission, the parties are also working on a memorandum of cooperation in the construction sector.

Georgy Chepik stressed: "We hope that a memorandum of understanding will finally be signed with the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the National Assembly of the Republic of the Congo."

Recently, LUKOIL's vice president for America, Africa, and the Middle East, Ivan Romanovsky, met with the minister of oil and gas of the republic, Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua. During the meeting, they discussed the possibility of the Russian company's participation in new oil and gas projects in the Republic of the Congo.

Apart from economic issues, the Russian ambassador emphasized the cultural cooperation of the two countries.

Chepik also noted that Russia and the Republic of the Congo plan to hold a cross-cultural week in Saint Petersburg and Brazzaville in June 2023

In addition, according to the ambassador, the Russian diplomatic mission plans to hold a cinema week in Brazzaville by the end of spring.

The envoy also revealed plans to open a Russian school in Pointe-Noire, as well as to create a Russian Orthodox Church parish on its territory. "Ideally, it would become such a powerful cultural cluster, a spiritual cluster of our presence in Pointe-Noire, and in the Congo in overall," he outlined.

According to the ambassador, the delegation of the Republic of the Congo is expected to be headed by the country's President Denis Sassou Nguesso at the forthcoming Russia-Africa Summit.

"We assume that Denis Sassou Nguesso will come to St. Petersburg. In any case, he has already indicated such intentions," he said.

The second Russia-Africa Summit is slated to take place in Saint Petersburg in July 2023.

According to Russian Foreign Ministry ambassador-at-large and head of the Russia-Africa Summit Secretariat, Oleg Ozerov, Russia is counting on the participation of a majority of African nations in the forthcoming summit. The ambassador stressed, that Russia is convinced that the leaders will ignore threats from the West, which demands that Africa stop cooperating with Moscow.

"We are surely counting on the participation of most African countries in the second summit and we are convinced that most of the leaders of the states will ignore those blatant threats and outright blackmail from Western nations, which demand to stop cooperation of African countries with Russia. This, of course, will not happen," Ozerov said during the international forum Russia-Africa: Cooperation as a Path to Sustainable Development.