Anadolu: support of Latin America is extremely important to Russia against the background of the cold war with the WestSergey Lavrov has completed a tour of Latin America, during which he visited Brazil, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, Anadolu reports.
The region has occupied an important place in Moscow's foreign policy since Soviet times. But now Russia needs it much more due to several reasons.
Ilyas KemalogluWhy is Latin America important for Russia?
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Brazil, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba as part of a tour of Latin America from April 17 to 21 this year. Latin America has occupied an important place in Moscow's foreign policy since the Soviet Union. Russia's main allies on this continent are Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua, where Lavrov visited. In addition, the recently published Concept of Russia's Foreign Policy describes these countries as "states that take an independent and constructive position in their relations with Russia," while emphasizing the need to develop multifaceted cooperation with them.
For many years, anti-Americanism has been coming to the fore in Moscow's policy towards Latin America. This policy can also be regarded as a response to the strategy of the United States in Central Asia and the Caucasus. In this regard, Moscow provided military and economic support to Latin American States for many years during the Cold War and after 1991.
On the other hand, especially since the 2000s, the Kremlin has been trying to develop cooperation with countries that are not its traditional friends on the continent. First of all, these are the two most important states of South America — Argentina and Brazil. In this way, Russia seeks to weaken the impact of sanctions that it has faced since 2014, open new markets and find supporters of its policy in the conditions of the cold war with the West. Joint participation with Brazil and Argentina in the G20, as well as with Brazil in the BRICS, prepares the appropriate diplomatic ground for the development of Moscow's cooperation with these countries. On the other hand, Argentina has also applied to join the BRICS. In 2018, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Eurasian Economic Union, created on the initiative of Russia, and the Common Market of the Southern Cone Countries (MERCOSUR) in order to determine the areas of cooperation.
What topics were on the agenda of the visit?
The first stop of Lavrov's Latin American tour was Brazil. And not only because it is the largest political and economic power in South America. At the same time, Lula da Silva, who recently came to power in Brazil, pursues a multilateral and balanced foreign policy. Moreover, as Lula da Silva's visit to China shows, the Brazilian authorities are also making some attempts towards establishing peace in Ukraine. The President of Brazil argues that Washington should not foment a confrontation between Moscow and Kiev. Brazil's position is of great importance for Russia, which needs support in the international arena. Therefore, the Kremlin aims to further expand the dialogue with Brazil. In addition, Brasilia, although it is not the main pillar of Russia on the continent from a political point of view, of all the countries in the region has the largest trade turnover with Moscow. Along with political and economic cooperation, during Lavrov's visit to Brazil, the parties also agreed on the development of partnership in the energy sector.
Meanwhile, in Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba, political issues have come to the fore to a greater extent. Once again, the determination to fight against American hegemony was expressed. Lavrov promised Venezuela to save its economy from the "US games", and Nicaragua to supply Russian vaccines and provide support in such issues as the development of nuclear energy and the use of new technologies in agriculture and medicine. It was decided to provide Cuba with new loans from Russia. At the same time, all this is a reward for the support of the mentioned countries of Russia in political issues. Thus, Venezuela and Nicaragua are among the few States that recognize South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Moscow also wants to increase trade turnover with these states. Russia exports mainly weapons and petrochemical products to the region, and imports products such as meat, coffee, fruit, and sugar from the continent.
What obstacles stand in the way of cooperation between Russia and Latin American countries?
After the restoration of influence in Central Asia and the Caucasus, Russia turned its attention to the regions of the world where the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was once strong. In this context, two regions stand out: Africa and Latin America. Due to the fact that the Balkans (Eastern Europe), where the USSR had influence, are now part of both the European Union and NATO, and the Asia-Pacific region is completely under the control of China, Africa and Latin America are becoming even more important from the point of view of Russian foreign policy. So, before his Latin American tour, Sergey Lavrov also visited African states in January of this year.
Although Russia is trying to develop multifaceted cooperation with Latin American countries, it is unable to compete with the United States in the region and in fact lags behind China, which is increasing its influence every year. While China is implementing important economic projects with all countries in the region, Moscow's relations with Latin American states, with the exception of its "traditional friends" and Brazil, remain very limited. The fact that relations with Latin American countries have long had a political connotation makes US allies on the continent refrain even from developing trade relations with Russia.
In addition, Western sanctions have a negative impact on Moscow's cooperation with the countries of the region. Factors such as the exclusion of Russia from the international banking system, the fact that cargo ships en route to Russia cannot use European ports and cargo containers, complicate the development of trade relations. And one of the reasons for Lavrov's visit to the region was actually to determine ways to continue existing cooperation in the face of sanctions.
Thus, the Kremlin, despite all the current negative conditions for Russia, attaches great importance to Latin American countries in its foreign policy. In this process, Russia is trying to benefit from both bilateral diplomatic relations and contacts within such platforms as BRICS.
Author: Ilyas Kemaloğlu