Namibia–Russia relations are the

bilateral relations Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...

between Namibia and Russia. Namibia has an embassy in Moscow and Russia has an embassy in Windhoek.

Samuel Mbambo Rev. Samuel Kaveto Mbambo (born in Kavango Region) is a Namibian politician, diplomat, theologian, historian, and academic. He was a governor of the Kavango Region, and after its split into Kavango West and Kavango East, also of these new entities. ...

is the Namibian representative in Moscow, while Russia is represented in Windhoek by Nicolai Gribkov.

Pre-independence

The Soviet Union gave significant amounts of aid to the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) during the Namibian War of Independence. Many leaders of the

SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...

movement in Namibia received guerrilla training in the Soviet Union. With the end of South Africa's unpopular apartheid rule in Namibia in 1990, the Soviet Union and its successor state Russia established diplomatic relations with the country.

Post-independence

Relations between Namibia and Russia were considered "excellent" in 2006 by Namibian Minister of Education Nangolo Mbumba, while Russia expressed a desire for even stronger relations, particularly in the economic field. Also in 2006, the Namibia-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation was officially opened during a visit by Russian Natural Resources Minister Yuri Trutnev to Windhoek. During said visit, the Minister said Russia was interested in investing in oil, hydro-electric power and tourism. In 2007, Russian Prime Minister

Mikhail Fradkov Mikhail Yefimovich Fradkov ( rus, Михаи́л Ефи́мович Фрадко́в, p=mʲɪxɐˈil jɪˈfʲiməvʲɪtɕ frɐtˈkof; born 1 September 1950) is a Russian politician who served as Prime Minister of Russia from 2004 to 2007. An In ...

held discussions with Namibian Prime Minister Nahas Angula and President

Hifikepunye Pohamba Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba (born 18 August 1936) is a Namibian politician who served as the second president of Namibia from 21 March 2005 to 21 March 2015. He won the 2004 presidential election overwhelmingly as the candidate of SWAPO, and was ...

in regards to the possibility of developing Namibia's significant uranium deposits with an aim towards creating a nuclear power plant in the country. In 2008, Trutnev returned to Namibia, this time to Swakopmund, to meet at the third annual Intergovernmental Commission. Top foreign ministry official Marco Hausiku and his deputy

Lempy Lucas Lempy Lucas, also: Lukas, (born 7 November 1961 in Eendombe, Omusati Region) is a Namibian politician. A member of the National Assembly from 2000 until 2015, Lucas is a member of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO). She has held ...

represented Namibia in discussions with Trutnev. Dmitry Medvedev in Namibia 25 June 2009-1

In June 2009, during a four-day tour to five African countries,

Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev ( rus, links=no, Дмитрий Анатольевич Медведев, p=ˈdmʲitrʲɪj ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ mʲɪdˈvʲedʲɪf; born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician who has been serving as the dep ...

became the first Russian head of state to visit Namibia. Medvedev was accompanied by a delegation of around 400 Russian businessmen, including the heads of

Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the larges ...

and Alrosa. The visit included signing a number of energy-related agreements. Russia has drastically increased the

bilateral aid In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another. Ai ...

it gives to Namibia, from $90,000 in 2012 to $1.5 million in 2017.

References

External links

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Documents on the Namibia–Russia relationship from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Namibia-Russia relations Africa–Russia relations Bilateral relations of Russia Russia