As part of the Ukrainian-African renaissance, Ukraine seeks to develop relations of mutual respect and benefit with African countries, in particular offering a number of beneficial areas of cooperation for Nigeria’s new leadership, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said in an interview with the Nigerian edition of The Guardian Nigeria.
“In May, I became the first Ukrainian foreign minister to attend the presidential inauguration ceremony in an African country. It was Nigeria. This fact shows Ukraine’s commitment to developing relations with Nigeria’s new leadership. This way we show other African countries that Ukraine seeks to develop partnership based on mutual respect and shared benefits,” he said, according to the press service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
According to Kuleba, Ukraine has made steps towards each other in the spirit of mutual respect and now counts on reciprocal steps of the new leadership of Nigeria to develop mutually beneficial relations.
“We propose to increase the volume of trade and consider the possibility of attracting Ukrainian construction companies to projects in Nigeria. Ukraine also has a lot of experience in digitalization. Our “State on Smartphone” program allows citizens to do almost everything online, receive public services. We are ready to share this experience with you. Another promising area of cooperation is cybersecurity. Nigeria is one of the countries that suffer from the highest number of cyber attacks. We know how to counter them effectively,” he said.
Kuleba also stressed that the Peace Formula proposed by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is the only real way to restore a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine.
“Imagine if Nigeria, God forbid, experienced aggression – would you agree to give up part of your territory, allow someone to occupy it and torture your people? You wouldn’t agree to that. Being at the inauguration of your president, I saw your army. I am convinced that your warriors would have fought resolutely for your land. That is what we are doing today. We did not start this war. The hostilities are taking place on our territory, but we know what we are fighting for: the freedom and security of our citizens. And that motivates us to fight against the invaders,” the minister said.
