President of Kenya, 'trade with Moscow can grow'

"The volume of trade between Kenya and Russia is low, but the growth potential of our economies is significant", said Kenyan President William Ruto, on his Twitter profile, on the sidelines of the surprise visit of the Russian Foreign Minister Serghiei Lavrov in Nairobi, reiterating in a statement that the two nations are ready to sign a new trade pact.

Lavrov's stop in the Kenyan capital takes place in view of the BRICS ministerial meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, and at the same time after the African tour carried out last week by his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba. In another tweet, Ruto brought forward the request to Moscow that Africa be represented in the United Nations Security Council, where Russia is one of the five permanent members. In 2022, Kenya exported $55 million worth of products to Russia, while imports amounted to $266 million, according to the latest Kenyan government data.