By Ragan M. Conteh
Russian federation’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Guinea and Sierra Leone, Alexey V. Popov, has today Monday 5 February, 2024 paid courtesy call to the Speaker of Sierra Leone’s parliament, Hon. Dr. Abass Chernor Bundu, in his chambers at parliament building in Freetown.
Welcoming the Russian Ambassador, Hon. Dr. Abass Chernor Bundu, said he was delighted and was hoping for the ambassador’s visit with great expectations.
He recalled his last visit to Russia when parliament’s speakers from African countries were invited to grace an occasion by the authorities in Russia aimed at strengthening the continent’s relationship with the Russian Federation.
The Russian ambassador, Alexey V. Popov, thanked Mr. speaker for the visit and informed him that he had already presented his letter of credentials to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Timothy Kabba, and would do same to President Bio during the course of the week.
Commenting on the hospitality of the people of Freetown, the ambassador extended an invitation to Sierra Leone to observe Russia’s forthcoming elections and that, he said, President Putin had given him the task to building and deepening multilateral relationships with African countries.
Backed by actions, he said, President Putin was ready to assist African nations in terms of fostering political, social and economic cooperation between Russia and these countries. He also spoke about the provision of Russian scholarships for Sierra Leone’s students to study in Russia, and by helping the nation in its agriculture.
And also, he went on, plans are underway to re-establishing Russia’s parliament, and diplomatic mission to the Republic of Sierra Leone.
Giving Sierra Leone’s a placement as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, he called on Sierra Leone to support Russia’s bid for a review of the Rome Statute, that established the International Criminal Court which is responsible for trying war crimes and crimes against humanity.
He also said that if Zelensky is to be given a platform to address the AU, it will affect Russia’s relations with African countries.
He also said Russia was only targeting military installations in Ukraine, unlike Israel which is targeting and have killed over 30,000 unarmed civilians in Palestine.
And, he ended, by speaking on the need for strengthening and facilitating cooperation between parliaments of Russia and Sierra Leone.
In his reaction, Hon. Dr. Abass Chernor Bundu, called for the immediate cessation of hostilities and end of the war between Russia and Ukraine as the war has had devastating consequences on weak and smaller nations of the world.
Wishing the ambassador well on his tour of duty, he said, he would go through the documents submitted to understand the issues being raised therein and would respond afterwards accordingly.
He called for the immediate re-opening of the Russian embassy in Sierra Leone, and noted that if an MoU is to be brought to parliament by the executive, appropriate action will be taken by the House to give it legal status.
He also said that Sierra Leone would continue to support the existence of the ICC created to adjudicate on issues relating to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
He called on belligerents in world ongoing wars to spare civilian population in respect of international humanitarian laws and called for an immediate restoration of peace between Russia and Ukraine.
He said that he was gratified that Russia had extended an invitation to Sierra Leone to observe its forthcoming elections, unlike others who did not do so, and wished his fellows a successful and smooth election in Russia.