By Ochiaka Ugwu
The Ambassador of Russian Federation to Nigeria, Amb. Andrey Podyolyshev has described Nigeria as a vital strategic partner to his nation saying Russia’s cooperation with Nigeria largely shapes their prospect in West Africa.
Podyolyshev who made this known in a press conference in Abuja Tuesday said Nigeria was a potential anchor of regional stability and development being the core of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in terms of population, economy and military potential.
Highlighting core areas of Russia–Nigeria cooperation, he said that Russia–Nigeria relations have a long history going back to Soviet times covering many fields, from education to energy.
Podyolyshev informed that Russia, Nigeria bilateral cooperation was entering a new phase of activation, driven by the mutual wish to diversify international ties.
According him, “Education is a key pillar. Since the 1960s the USSR provided scholarships for Nigerian students. Thousands of Nigerians studied in the Soviet Union in engineering, medicine and other fields. This continues today: each year Nigerian students enter Russian universities on state quotas. Russian technical and medical diplomas are highly valued in Nigeria.
“Energy cooperation includes oil and gas and the nuclear sector. Russian companies are interested in upstream projects and infrastructure. An intergovernmental agreement has been signed on building a Center for Nuclear Science and Technology in Nigeria with a research reactor, and, in the longer term, a nuclear power plant.
“In industry and infrastructure, there is potential to complete and modernize facilities started with Soviet assistance and launch new joint projects in metallurgy, transport and agro-industry.
“In security, an agreement on military-technical cooperation is in force. It covers supply of Russian equipment and training of Nigerian personnel. This strengthens Nigeria’s ability to fight terrorism and piracy” he stated.
He further revealed that cooperation was also developing in healthcare, digital technologies and culture, stating they had seen a shift from episodic projects to long-term partnership.
“In recent years relations have revived: high-level meetings took place on the margins of Russia–Africa summits, bilateral visits were held. For now, trade is still modest and mainly includes Russian grain and fertilizers to Nigeria and Nigerian cocoa and agricultural exports to Russia.
“Nigeria as a potential global center of influence. Looking ahead, Nigeria is not only a key bilateral partner. It is also a potential global center of influence in the multipolar world” he said.
“Demography, resources and regional leadership give Nigeria a real chance to move beyond African issues and become one of the global centers of power. UN projections suggest Nigeria could become the world’s third most populous country. Successful reforms could move Nigeria toward the largest economies. Some forecasts suggest that by the middle of the 21st century Nigeria could approach the world’s top ten economies in purchasing power parity.
“Nigeria’s soft power is also growing. Nigerian cinema, music and literature have become global. A large and active diaspora shapes perceptions of Africa worldwide.
“Russia is interested in Nigeria’s rise. On key platforms, Moscow and Abuja often share positions: democratization of global governance, rejection of unilateral sanctions and defense of sovereignty” he noted.
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