Rugunda, African leaders meet President Putin over Russia-ukraine war

The former Prime Minister of Uganda, Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda and other African leaders on Saturday held peace talks with the President of Russia, H.E Vladimir Putin, in a move aimed at ending the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The high-level meeting was held in Saint Petersburg, Russia where Dr. Rugunda  was the Special Envoy representing President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in the mediation process. 

Seven African leaders — the presidents of Comoros, Senegal, South Africa and Zambia, as well as Egypt's prime minister and top envoys from the Republic of Congo and Uganda — visited Ukraine on Friday to try to help end the nearly 16-month-old war.

The African leaders then traveled to St. Petersburg on Saturday to meet with Putin who is attending a business forum in Russia's second-largest city.

Putin and the African leaders weren't expected to comment after the meeting, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will hold a briefing.

Speaking at the forum on Friday, Putin declared that the first Russian tactical nuclear weapons have been deployed to Belarus, describing the move as a deterrent against Western efforts to defeat Russia in Ukraine. He previously said that the deployment would begin in July.

Asked if he could order the use of battlefield nuclear weapons in Ukraine, Putin said that there was no need for that but noted that Moscow could use its nuclear arsenals in case of a "threat to the Russian statehood."

"In that case, we will certainly use all the means that the Russian state has. There should be no doubt about that," he said.

The mission to Ukraine, the first of its kind by African leaders, comes in the wake of other peace initiatives — such as one by China — and carries particular importance for Africa, which relies on food and fertilizer deliveries from Russia and Ukraine. The war has impeded exports from one of the world's most important breadbaskets.

"This conflict is affecting Africa negatively," South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said at a news conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and four other African leaders after their closed-door talks on Friday.

Ramaphosa and others acknowledged the intensity of the hostilities but insisted all wars must come to an end and emphasized their willingness to help expedite that.

"I do believe that Ukrainians feel that they must fight and not give up. The road to peace is very hard," he said, adding that "there is a need to bring this conflict to an end sooner rather than later."