West African leaders on Tuesday demanded exemptions from a ban on wheat and fertilizer imports from Russia, whose supply chains were interrupted following its war on Ukraine.
Speaking at the 8th edition of the Africa CEO Forum in Ivory Coast’s economic capital Abidjan, Senegal’s President and African Union chairman Macky Sall, said exemptions to the financial sanctions against Moscow applied by European countries to continue energy trade with Moscow should also apply to Africa’s imports.
“We are a collateral victim of this situation because of the weaknesses of our economies,” Sall said, speaking alongside his counterpart Mohamed Bazoum of Niger.
Last month, European Union leaders agreed to block most Russian oil imports by the end of 2022 to punish Moscow for invading Ukraine, but the ban affects oil that arrives by sea, not pipeline oil, after opposition from Hungary.
Sanctions on Russian gas exports to the EU were delayed, although plans to open a new gas pipeline from Russia to Germany were frozen.
Pointing to “double standards” Sall stressed that African economies are suffering because of the crisis in Ukraine.
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