Russia in Africa and Frank Talk on Feminist Foreign Policies:

The Latest Episode of UN-scripted — Vodka, Kalashnikovs and Power: Putin’s Charm Offensive to Africans

by Stephanie Fillion and Kacie Candela. This article originally appeared on PassBlue.

One of the most popular activities at the Russian-African summit in Sochi in late October was trying out the virtual reality booth with Russian rifles. President Putin wants investments and closer friendships in Africa, while the United States takes a back seat. JOE PENNEY

African summits may be in vogue worldwide, and Russia’s recent summit in Sochi in late October was no exception. A PassBlue correspondent, Joe Penney, traveled to the Black Sea resort to report on President Vladimir Putin’s pitch to African leaders, as he promoted a second African independence, this time a financial one, with offers of major development projects like nuclear power plants. Yet Russia is the №1 supplier of weapons to Africa, and many African delegates didn’t pass up a chance to hold and pose with Kalashnikovs at the summit.

In our ninth podcast episode, you can also hear highlights from our exclusive interview, in New York, with the former Swedish foreign minister and mother of feminist foreign policy, Margot Wallstrom. She talks frankly about its origins, hurdles and whether it will keep thriving in Sweden and elsewhere.

To hear the interviews with Joe Penney and Margot Wallstrom in this latest UN-Scripted episode, download it here or at Apple Podcasts, Pod Paradise, Spotify, SoundCloud, Stitcher, TuneIn, Patreon or Google Play.

Originally published at https://www.passblue.com on November 20, 2019.