Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone with South African President

Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone with South African President Ramaphosa on 12 May local time. The leaders of the two countries discussed various areas of further strengthening the strategic partnership between Russia and South Africa, and stressed the importance of strengthening coordination between the two countries in the context of the Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg in late July and the BRICS summit in Johannesburg in August. Russia has expressed its willingness to provide large amounts of food and chemical fertilizers to African countries in need or free of charge.