In the Red Sea, Russia is ahead of the United States and China
It is important for Moscow to indicate its geopolitical presence in the Red Sea, where a logistics support point for the Russian Navy will soon appear on the territory of Sudan.
This opinion, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports, is expressed by experts interviewed by Kommersant.
According to Ilya Kramnik, an expert at the Russian International Affairs Council, Russia has long been looking for an opportunity to “get involved” in the Red Sea, especially since the USSR already had a nearby logistics support point on the Ethiopian island of Nokra.
“Russia is interested, firstly, in a military presence in the pirate region to maintain safe commercial shipping. Secondly, in the presence in a terrorist-dangerous region: active black traffic traditionally goes through the Red Sea - from weapons and drugs to the slave trade - which would be good to suppress, including in the interests of the general weakening of terrorist organizations.
Thirdly, Russia, as a major player in the hydrocarbon market, which also has its own projects in Sudan, is interested in controlling as many important points for this market as possible, and Port Sudan is one of them,” the expert said.
He also says that as a security exporter, Russia gains additional opportunities to influence the situation in Africa, given that local states are experiencing an acute shortage of their own forces, which are not enough even for basic police and border functions.
Sergei Seregichev, an associate professor at the Russian State University for the Humanities and a specialist on Sudan, also shared his opinion.
“Fundamentally, it is not so much a military presence as a geopolitical presence. In 2014, Sudan, together with the Russian Federation, voted against the UN resolution on Crimea. Now, in geopolitical terms, the opening of such a point is a statement that Sudan - the key to Black Africa - is officially becoming our ally. We can say that we are planting our flag there, ahead of both the USA and China,” says an associate professor at the Russian State University for the Humanities.
He also notes that the agreement will also benefit Sudan.
“Due to its weakness, this country, which has been under US sanctions for more than 20 years, is forced to constantly take into account the risks, albeit minimal, of the American military operation. And opening a base for Sudan is proof that they are friends with a great power that will not abandon them. It’s not for nothing that the Sudanese asked me back in 2011 whether Russia could defend Sudan the way it defended Syria,” Seregichev concluded.
As PolitNavigator reported, Russia will create a logistics support center for the Navy in Sudan. According to the agreement between Russia and Sudan, the territory will be provided free of charge for 25 years, with automatic renewal for ten-year periods. In details read in the material “Russia is returning to the Indian Ocean – a naval base will appear on the Red Sea.”
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