On July 28, in Pretoria, South Africa, the Valdai Discussion Club in partnership with the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) will hold the 3rd Russian-African Conference titled: “Realpolitik in a Divided World: Rethinking Russia-South Africa Ties in a Global and African Context”.

       The conference will bring together experts and political figures from C？te d’Ivoire, Egypt, Russia, South Africa, and Tanzania, who are involved in the expert activities of the Valdai Club and Russian-African cooperation. The event is expected to be opened by Roman Ambarov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of South Africa and the Kingdom of Lesotho, Andrey Bystritskiy, Chairman of the Board of the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club, and Elizabeth Sidiropolous, Executive Director of the South African Institute of International Affairs.

       It is no coincidence that South Africa has been chosen as the venue for the Valdai Club African conference this year. In 2025, this country will chair the G20 summit. Equal relations without barriers and restrictions, the mutual consideration of values and national interests, as well as issues of technological development and security, chosen as priorities by the South African presidency, are equally important for both South Africa and Russia.

       In preparation for the upcoming summit, special attention is being paid to issues of technological development and the construction of digital sovereignty, one of the foundations of state security. In addition, the South African presidency is also focusing on the strategy for combating neo-colonialism, which remains extremely important for African countries, as well as issues of fair global trade.

       The goal of the conference is to form and expand communities of African and Russian experts interested in cooperation, the confidential discussion of the most pressing international issues, and the preparation of recommendations for practical foreign policy work.

       The Valdai Club partner, the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), is one of South Africa's key think tanks on international issues and a co-organizer of the Think20 as part of the South Africa’s G20 presidency. SAIIA representatives are widely known in the international expert community, they participate in the Annual Meetings and other events of the Valdai Club, and are also actively developing research on Russia in their country.

       The Russian-African conference will last one day; it includes an opening and four thematic sessions. The opening and the first two sessions will be available to the media and a wide audience, and will be broadcast on the Club’s website. During the sessions, experts will discuss the following topics:

       G20 and BRICS: assessing strategic roles in the changing global order

       Humanitarian cooperation and the role of historical memory in Russia’s relations with South Africa and other African countries

       Bilateral relations between Russia and South Africa: status and prospects

       Trump and the world order

       An international team of authors has prepared a new Valdai report especially for the 3rd Russian-African Conference: “South Africa and Russia: A Long-Lasting Legacy of Strategic Cooperation”

       It provides an overview of the history, current status and prospects of relations between Russia and South Africa. It is expected that the materials of the discussions and recommendations of the conference participants will contribute to the expert preparation of the third Russia-Africa summit, which is expected to be held in 2026 in one of the African countries.

       The following experts from throughout Africa will participate in the discussions: Nourhan ElSheikh(Egypt), Professor of Political Science at Cairo University; Adu Yao Nicaise(Cote d'Ivoire), Associate Professor at the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia named after Patrice Lumumba; Godwin Gonde(Tanzania), lecturer at the Dr. Salim Ahmed Salim Centre for International Relations; Stephen Gruzd (South Africa), head of the African Governance and Diplomacy Programme at the South African Institute of International Affairs; Gustavo de Carvalho (South Africa), senior research fellow at the South African Institute of International Affairs; Pilani Mthembu(South Africa), executive director of the Institute for Global Dialogue in South Africa; and David Monyai (South Africa), director of the Centre for China-Africa Studies at the University of Johannesburg; Louw Vaudran (South Africa), senior adviser at the International Crisis Group and others.

       The Russian side will be represented by Viktoria Panova, vice-rector of the Higher School of Economics, Russian Sherpa in the Women’s Twenty (W20), and head of the BRICS Expert Council; Igor Istomin, head of the Department of Applied Analysis of International Problems at MGIMO University; Dmitry Novikov, deputy head of the Department of International Relations at the Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs at the Higher School of Economics; Mayya Nikolskaya, head of the African Studies Programme at the Institute for International Studies at MGIMO University; Denis Degterev, chief researcher at the Institute of Africa of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Fyodor Lukyanov, Research Director at the Foundation for Development and Support of the Valdai Discussion Club; Oleg Barabanov, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Daria Zelenova, Head of the BRICS African Strategy Centre, Institute for African Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences and others.

       Working language: English.

       Information for the media: In order to get accredited for the event, please fill out the form on our web site. If you have any questions about the event, please call +79269307763

       Links to the live broadcast of the discussion will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VK, Telegram and Dzen.