Events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s Victory against Nazi Germany were organized across Africa, while several of its state heads travelled to Moscow to attend celebrations
- Wolfgang Lieberknecht
- vor 9 Stunden
- 6 Min. Lesezeit
Peoples dispatch: Events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s Victory against Nazi Germany were organized in countries across Africa, while several of its state heads travelled to Moscow to attend celebrations and hold meetings to deepen bilateral relations with Russia.
Captain Ibrahim Traoré and other African leaders attend 80th anniversary of Victory Day celebrations in Russia.
Events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s Victory against Nazi Germany were held across the African continent. Their state leaders, undeterred by the boycott by the US and Western Europe, flew to Moscow to attend the celebrations and hold meetings on its sidelines to deepen bilateral relations with Russia.
Multiple events were organized around the anniversary in the three countries of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). In Burkina Faso, whose president Ibrahim Traore was among the most popular attendees in Moscow, a motorcycle rally went through the central roads of the capital Ouagadougou, waving flags of Burkina Faso and Russia together.
At the Université Libre du Burkina (ULB), the African Initiative Association collaborated with the University’s Diplomatic Club and the Movement for Development and Education (MADE) to screen the Battle of Stalingrad.
“Katyusha”
In front of its Monument of National Heroes, dedicated to the Burkinabés who sacrificed in the struggle for independence from France, the national police of Burkina Faso, along with two popular soloists and a dance group, performed “Katyusha”.
Composed in 1938 and named after a Russian peasant girl whose love song to her man soldiering on the frontline of the war with Nazi Germany, “Katyusha” is an iconic WW2 song, different versions of which were since adopted by partisans in Europe and elsewhere. Organizers of the orchestra performing the song in Ouagadougou said, “This is how Burkinabés congratulate Russians on May 9.”
Acknowledging the contribution of Burkinabé soldiers fighting in the Free France formations, Russian President Vladimir Putin assured Traoré in his meeting that Russia will deepen its defense and security cooperation with Burkina Faso.
“In addition to defense and security,” Traoré called for the opening of branches of Russian universities in his country to teach science to young Burkinabés “so that we can develop our own production, industry, and engineering.”
“Without the sacrifice of the Soviet Union, the world would be very different today”: Mali defense minister
Defense heads of Burkina Faso’s AES allies, Mali and Niger, also held bilateral meetings with their Russian counterpart, Andrey Belousov. “We know that without the sacrifice of the Soviet Union, the world would be very different today,” said Corps General Sadio Camara, head of the military department of Mali, where the Russian embassy hosted a screening of the film “Liberation”, about the Battle of Berlin.
Referring to the specter of Nazism raised again by the West in Ukraine, Camara assured Belousov of the AES’ support for Russia’s war efforts.
Russia-Sahel Alliance International Boxing Tournament
Belousov committed to expanding Russia’s military ties with AES in his meeting with the defense minister of Niger, where the Russia-Sahel Alliance International Boxing Tournament was organized, squaring off Russian boxers against their counterparts from the AES.
The AES was formed after the French-backed regimes in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger were deposed amid mass anti-France protests, bringing in popular military governments that have expelled French troops.
In search of non-Western partners that can help develop its security and industry while respecting their sovereignty, the AES has gravitated toward Russia. But it is not only the AES countries that celebrated Victory Day and sought greater cooperation with Russia.
Defense chiefs from several other African countries, including Congo-Brazzaville, Nigeria, and Libya, also met Belousov.
The South African defense delegation, led by Minister Angie Motshekga, visited a Russian military educational institution for women, before holding talks with Russian Deputy Defense Ministers Alexander Fomin and Yunus-Bek Yevkurov to discuss military-technical collaboration. Defense heads of Algeria and Equatorial Guinea also met Fomin and Yevkurov.
Ethiopia seeks greater cooperation on transport infrastructure
Presidents of six other African countries also attended the Victory Day in Moscow, including Ethiopia, which earlier on May 5 had celebrated its own Victory Day, commemorating the Arbegnoch Resistance, which defeated the occupation forces of Fascist Italy in 1941. Paying tribute, Russian Ambassador Evgeny Terekhin described this victory as “a symbol of hope for oppressed peoples worldwide.”
Days later, Ethiopian President Taye Selassie flew to Moscow, where on the sidelines of its Victory Day, he met Igor Levitin, Russian presidential aide for international cooperation and transport. “Logistics and transportation are at the heart of our national and regional integration goals,” he said in the meeting. Levitin, in turn, assured that “Ethiopia is a key partner for Russia on the continent. We are keen to support your infrastructure ambitions and to collaborate on transport initiatives that benefit the wider region.”
Egyptian army’s participation in the Parade signifies the geopolitical shifts in West Asia
Also in attendance was Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whom US President Donald Trump had called “my favorite dictator” at the G7 meeting in 2019, with a certain sense of ownership. Usually docile to US interests, Sisi resisted Trump earlier this year, refusing to yield to the threat of aid cuts when Trump demanded that Egypt should take in the Palestinians he intended to depopulate from Gaza.
On May 9, Sisi stood alongside Putin, attending the Victory Day parade in which, for the first time, the Egyptian armed forces also marched along.
“There is currently strategic cooperation between Egypt and Russia in the military field. The participation of the Egyptian army in the parade reflects this,” Nourhan El-Sheikh, a member of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, told Sputnik, recalling the important role played by the Soviet Union in setting up the Egyptian army.
Congo-Brazzaville’s President Denis Nguesso, who said he chose to attend the celebration despite Western attempts to dissuade him, held talks with Putin in the lead-up to Victory Day on May 7 to discuss greater trade and cooperation in energy and infrastructure.
Education also forms an important component of the bilateral relations between Russia and Africa. About 250 scholarships are annually given to Congolese students by Russia to study at its universities.
Study science to fuel innovation in home country: Mnangagwa tells Zimbabwean students in Russia
460 Zimbabwean students also study in Russia. They will be joined by another 125, awarded scholarships for the 2025-26 academic year. Addressing them on Victory Day, Zimbabwe’s Emmerson Mnangagwa urged these students to prioritize science and technology to fuel innovation back in their home country.
In the bilateral meeting with Mnangagwa on May 10, Putin said, “Russia and Zimbabwe share common – or closely aligned – positions on most key issues on the international agenda. We stand together in advocating for the establishment of a just multipolar world order based on the supremacy of international law.”
Stressing that “Russia places great importance on the comprehensive strengthening of its relations with the countries of the African continent,” Putin added, “While current Russia-Zimbabwe trade remains modest, there is significant potential for growth across a range of sectors, including geological exploration, energy, and agriculture.”
Mnangagwa paid tribute to the Soviet martyrs of WW2 in this meeting, saying, “That Victory 80 years ago will stand for generations to come as a powerful testament of the courage, resilience, and sacrifice of the Russian people in securing peace, freedom, truth and justice… It was the defining triumph of the human spirit over tyranny and oppression.”
Tributes also came in from several African leaders who were not in attendance in Moscow. Describing the anniversary “as a momentous date that symbolizes the heroism, resilience, and sacrifice of the Russian people in the struggle for freedom and peace,” Tanzanian President Samia Hassan wrote to Putin:
“Today, as then, the memory of this remarkable day continues to inspire all nations to uphold peace, justice, and cooperation. Tanzania deeply values its strong friendship with the Russian Federation, built on mutual respect and solidarity.”
Immortal Regiment Marches across Africa
In the lead-up to Victory Day, the Immortal Regiment Marches were observed in several African countries including Tanzania, DR Congo, Congo-Brazzaville, Benin, Ethiopia, Mali, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
Local Africans marched alongside Russian expats and embassy staff to honor the WW2 veterans.
If Nazi Germany had won the war, “Africa would simply have been an appendage to this empire… an enlarged slave camp,” Macharia Munene, Professor of History and International Relations at the US International University in Kenya’s capital Nairobi told Sputnik, explaining why Africans value the Soviet victory.
“Without the Soviet Union as a major player after World War Two,” she added, “decolonization would have been more difficult.”
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