Why Uganda’s President Gen Museveni is Travelling to Russia

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has today left for Russia to join other African leaders for the second Russia- Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum.

At Entebbe International Airport, President Museveni was seen off by the Minister for Presidency, Hon. Babirye Milly Babalanda, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet,Ms. Lucy NakyobeMbonye,the Chief of Defense Forces,Gen. Wilson MbasuMbadi, Uganda Police Director for Human Resource & Training, DIGP Godfrey Golooba and the Deputy Commissioner General of Prisons Mr.Samuel Akena.

While in Russia, President Museveni is expected to have a tête-à-tête session with his host, Russian President Vladimir Putin on a wide range of issues.

He’s also expected to have several bilateral meetings and discussions with different delegations at the sidelines of the summit.

The summit in St. Petersburg will run on Thursday and Friday after which H.E Museveni will head to the Serbian capital, Belgrade, to inaugurate a hub for promoting Uganda’s tourism, trade and investment potential in line with bolstering commercial diplomacy in Eastern Europe.

Uganda has for long enjoyed warm historical ties with Russia and present-day Serbia dating back to the early 1990s.

Uganda abstained from UN votes on the Ukrainian conflict, including one in February on the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which called on Moscow to withdraw its troops from the country.

Early this year, the son of Ugandan leader Yoweri Museveni, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, said he would send Ugandan troops to defend Moscow in case of an “imperialist” threat.

In July, during a tour of Africa by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Kainerugaba said, referring to Russia, “How can we be against someone who has never hurt us?

Russia has traditionally had strong ties to Africa because of its support for independence movements on the continent that were then struggling with colonial powers.

Museveni had a good decade of increasing communication and cooperation with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin is a key supplier of Uganda’s equipment, technology and knowledge transfer in the military sector.

The second Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum is scheduled for July 26 – 29. The first summit was held Oct. 22 – 24, 2019, in Sochi under the slogan: “For Peace, Security and Development.”