Addis Ababa, 23 December 2014: The Commissioner for Peace and Security of the African Union (AU), Smail Chergui, completed today a two-day visit to Moscow, as part of the partnership between the AU and the Russian Federation. The Commissioner was accompanied by officials from the Commission.

During the visit, the Commissioner met with the Special Presidential Envoy for International Cooperation in Combating Terrorism and Transnational Organized Crime, Alexander Zmeyevsky. He also met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for the Middle East and African countries, Mikhail L. Bogdanov. 

The discussions focussed on several of issues of common interest, including AU and international efforts to advance the quest for peace and security in Somalia, the Darfur region of Sudan, Central African Republic, northern Mali and Libya; the issue of terrorism and transnational organized crime; and support for the full operationalization of the African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA), with particular emphasis on the African Standby Force (ASF) and the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC). The partnership at the level of the United Nations (UN) Security Council, notably support for African positions as articulated by the AU, was also extensively discussed. Furthermore, there were exchanges of views on the visit that the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, plans to undertake to Russia in April 2015. 

Both sides agreed on a number of practical steps to strengthen the partnership between the Russian Federation and the AU within the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the AU Commission Chairperson, in Addis Ababa on 17 September 2014. These will include both regular consultations on issues of mutual concern and provision of support to specific AU's endeavors. 

Commissioner Chergui seized the opportunity of his presence in Moscow to meet with the Ambassador of Madagascar in Russia, in his capacity as Dean of the African Group, and other African Ambassadors, to brief them on AU's efforts towards the promotion of peace and security on the continent, as well as on his consultations with the Russian officials. He also met with the Bureau of the Spouses of the African Ambassadors Group to convey AU's appreciation for the initiative they have taken to make a financial contribution to the fight against the Ebola epidemic in the affected countries in West Africa.  

It should be recalled that, earlier on, Commissioner Chergui visited the United States of America, France, the United Kingdom and China, as part of the AU's efforts to develop strategic dialogues on peace and security issues with the permanent members of the UN Security Council and other international stakeholders.

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