Russian President Vladimir Putin announced during the Russia-Africa Summit in July that Russia would dispatch free grain as humanitarian aid to six African nations identified by the World Food Program.
President Putin took part in an extraordinary virtual G20 Summit hosted by India on Wednesday to discuss the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East, and factors standing in the way of truly effective global governance. Putin’s remarks highlight the differences in approach to world affairs by Russia and the United States, observers told Sputnik.
Russia expects the West to try to “Ukrainianize” the agenda of upcoming G20 Summit in New Delhi next week, and has warned that it will block any declaration from the gathering that fails to reflect its position on Ukraine and other global crises. Veteran Indian academic Anuradha Chenoy has told Sputnik why Moscow should have nothing to worry about.
The BRICS group of countries already includes two of the world's largest economies and about 40 per cent of its population, but at a meeting in Johannesburg this week, it will discuss possibly expanding its membership in a bid to expand the bloc's influence.