Русский
Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with his Zimbabwean counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa on Thursday (June 6) in St. Petersburg. The meeting will include one-on-one talks, followed by talks with an expanded circle of delegates. The Russian side will be represented by top diplomat Sergey Lavrov, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Alexander Kozlov, and Economic Development Ministers Maxim Reshetnikov, Shugayev and Likhachev. It is the fourth time since 2019 that Mnangagwa has visited Russia.
Russia-Zimbabwe relations date back to the Soviet era, while more recently, Zimbabwe was one of the few countries that voted with Russia on United Nations General Assembly Resolution 68/262 concerning the annexation of Crimea. Russia maintains strong economic and political ties with Zimbabwe and maintains an embassy in Harare.
Zimbabwe is landlocked, and bordered by BRICS member South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia to the north, and Mozambique to the east. The capital and largest city is Harare, and the second largest is Bulawayo. It has a population of about 17 million and a GDP (PPP) of about US$45 billion.
It was previously a British colony, however, has been under Western sanctions since the mid-2000’s concerning differing democratic and human rights values.
The main foreign exports of Zimbabwe are minerals, gold, and agriculture, and it currently enjoys rapid growth and development – it has the fastest growing mobile communications market in Africa.
The mining sector is also lucrative, with some of the world’s largest platinum reserves being mined by Anglo American plc, Zimplats, and Impala Platinum. Zimplats, the nation’s largest platinum company, has proceeded with US$500 million in expansions. The Marange diamond fields, discovered in 2006, are considered the biggest diamond find in over a century. They have the potential to improve the fiscal situation of the country. In terms of carats produced, the Marange field is one of the largest diamond-producing projects in the world. Metallon Corporation is Zimbabwe’s largest gold miner.
Russia’s bilateral trade with Zimbabwe is worth about US$80 million, with Russian exports including fertilizers, chemical products, transportation and vegetable products. Zimbabwe’s exports include root vegetables, other vegetable products and fruits.
Zimbabwe is a member of the United Nations, the Southern African Development Community, the African Union, and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa.
Further Reading
Russia & Africa 2024
Our 2024 Russia’s Pivot To Asia Guide features comprehensive discussions on Russia’s relationship with numerous African nations. It is a complimentary download and can be accessed in English here and Russian here.
