Isdore Guvamombe Assistant Editor

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Since launching its special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, many people who ordinarily would not have an interest in Russia, started following it up.

Today, everyone, including those who hate the country and its leader Vladimir Putin, know one thing: Russia is not an ordinary country. It is highly resilient, focused and calculative in all its moves. It is a great country!

Despite the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia has not neglected its friends; Russia has not abandoned its friends; Russia continues to co-operate and deliver grain, helicopters, agriculture inputs, and a lot of humanitarian aid, among others, to needy countries, and indeed Russia continues to pursue a plethora of business ventures and investments in especially, Africa, on a win-win basis.

Of course, one would forgive Russia if it had stopped social, economic and political responsibility elsewhere and concentrated on the war in Ukraine, but great countries do relent on promises. Great countries continue executing set international obligations. Great countries remember their friends even in times of own hardships.

Even the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has now learned that Russia still has a big role to play in serving the world with grain and agriculture inputs and mechanisation. Russia has the capacity. And, it has proved just that.

Now, who does that except Russia?

We all know how Russia and China showed progressive thinking about a decade ago by vetoing a US sponsored UN resolution to attack Zimbabwe, militarily.

That would have spelt doom for Zimbabwe and Russia saw how callous and greedy the US and its allies in EU had grown. It stopped them.

It will be unfair to talk about Russia without talking about how it helped many liberation movements in Africa gain their independence. It is a fete very few superpowers achieved.

Others like US actually sided with the colonialists, funded war against majority black people in Africa. While Russia and China helped liberation movements, the US and allies used force, chicanery, deception and many other tactics to deny black people their independence.

Russia has been consistent in supporting Africa decide its destiny, without slapping a single country with sanctions.

Not that Russia agrees with every developing country but unlike the US, Russia has not slapped countries it disagrees with, with sanctions. It finds solutions through dialogue. That is what a great country does.

On the other hand, the US has brazenly and relentlessly abused sanctions to cow its opponents.

Here is a country hated by United States and its allies — the 22 European Union countries— and had sanctions imposed on it by all these, and yet its economy is functioning properly.

These countries have ganged against Russia and have tried to bring its economy to its knees through sanctions and other blockades, propaganda, media gagging and other tricks. But Russia still stands and its economy is growing at an estimated 3 percent, much more than the economies of Germany and United Kingdom, which are not at war.

Livelihoods of Russian people continue to improve, despite the war. Does that not make Russia special?

In Russia, we see a country gaining ground in the war in Ukraine, and yet NATO and the US have spent billions of dollars sponsoring Ukraine financially, politically, technically, strategically and weapons-wise.

In real terms Russia is at war with US and its allies and Ukraine is the front or the playground, which means all these countries have failed to defeat Russia.

Obviously Ukraine President Zelenskyy has not been wise enough to see that he is being abused by US and its allies to the point where he has become a puppet of great repute.

In Zelenskyy, US President Joe Biden has found a willing instrument to prop up US interests at the expense of his country.

The people of Ukraine, will, forever regret having a President who brings war to his home country, which would have been avoided.

Russia at war in Ukraine, held its summit with Africa last year and delivered, not speeches but tangibles. Countries walked away bags full and not with speech papers. The summit finished with African countries walking back home with real paraphernalia.

Zimbabwe and Uganda, among others, will testify to the effect that the Russia-Africa summit delivered real tangibles, far too different from the US-Africa summit.

The US-Africa Summit was all froth and no beer, the Russia-Africa summit was all tangibles, rich in deliverablesand non-fiction.

In the contrary, the US under Biden administration has sought to demean African countries and lecture to them about non-important issues such as respecting homosexuality. Africa, the Biden administration should know, has more pressing important issues than concentrate of homosexuality issues.

In his own country, Biden brought policies that have destroyed the middle class, the baby boomers who now are struggling to survive. They can no longer afford basics.

Under Biden the ordinary US person is feeling the pain of eroded savings. No one can now still save for pension. Everything is being eroded.

But Biden decided to use billions of taxpayers’ money to prop up Zelenskyy who is in a war he should have avoided by simply considering what is good for his country and not what is good for the US.

Zelenskyy’s country is now all rubble, mangles and destroyed structures. The people of Ukraine have suffered enough and Zelenskky should resign. We all know Zelenskky is avoiding elections this year, giving the war as an excuse and yet it would have been a good opportunity for him to exit.

The people of Ukraine will be better without Zelenskky and indeed without the war. The US is very clever, it does not want any war fought on its ground but urges Zelenskyy to have a war fought in his own country. What hypocrisy? What tomfoolery? What crass?

Whatever is blinding Zelenskyy to this reality that he need to step aside and save his people is shocking.

Russia is a great country, special to many developing countries.

It is therefore, critical for the developing world in general, and African particular, to work with Russia in technology transfer, in enhancing food security and bolstering the health sector, among other things since Russia brings in win-win projects.

Alrosa for example, is a highly experienced and greatly equipped, technologically in the mining sector and Africa could benefit from its vast experience. It has been mining for decades and has seen it all.

Africa and the developing world need cut-edge mining technology to extract minerals and also needs value addition to attract good prices at the international market. This is what Russia has been doing for its success.

Africa is grappling with energy problems and Russia has the technology to build nuclear electricity stations and countries like South Africa have tested that. Turkey has also benefitted from this technology.

Russia goes to the polls in March and Africa could tap into its experience, given that Russia an extremely big country, which uses high technology in its voting system.

The actual election campaign in Moscow and the preparations for the ballot and logistics around distribution could give African countries more depth.

In the field of Information Communication Technology, Russia is very strong and can give African countries a lot of working experiences and the to build its own.

Suffice it to say, Russia has through many delegations to African countries shown its willingness to invest in all these fields. Russia is open to Build-Operate-Transfer deals. Russia says it is ready to exchange notes of national food security and manufacturing of inputs such as fertilisers, etc.

It is therefore critical for African countries to capitalise on synergies created during the Russia-African summit and come up with more investments in a wide variety of fields.

Finally Russia has offered Zimbabwe many scholarships in its international schools and many Africans can benefit so that the continent can develop a good labour force.

In Russia, Africa and the developing world can work on many projects that can uplift the livelihoods of local people.

Original article: herald.co.zw