Canada: Global AIDS conference kicks off amid fury over visas

Canada is hosting this year's International AIDS Conference. The event has been billed as a chance for "the world to come together." However, visa issues are causing frustration for would-be attendees from Africa.

Progress has been made on the HIV/AIDS pandemic since it began in the early 80s

Philomena Gori had a lot riding on her attendance at the 24th International AIDS Conference, which kicks off in the Canadian city of Montreal on Friday. The biennial event brings together thousands of scientists, politicians, activists and social workers from around the world to find solutions to the epidemic.

The 32-year-old, a social worker for people affected by AIDS in Cameroon, had taken time off from her current job and spent around $2,000 (€1,965) applying to the conference, securing accommodation and collecting the necessary documents for a visa. 

Her hope was to gain vital connections and know-how in order to help her found a new HIV charity in her home country of Kenya.

But on July 22 — 88 days after she submitted her visa application — a rejection letter landed in her inbox. She was being denied entry, with no time to react.

"I am so disappointed, I am so angry right now," she told DW in a video call. "I sacrificed a lot, I gave a lot of effort to attend and be able to give back to my community.

"In Africa, we are the ones being affected mostly by these diseases, and I was expecting them to give us more opportunities. I feel like it's because we are coming from African countries."

Philomena Gori spent around $2,000 applying for the conference

Canadian authorities under pressure

Gori is not the only one in this situation. Organizers fear that hundreds of other delegates from Africa, Asia and South America are still waiting for, or have already been denied, visitor visas.

The situation has been turning into a scandal. The AIDS 2022 conference, organized by the International AIDS Society (IAS), had been billed as a chance to "call the world to come together to reengage and follow the science." 

But a day before the event was set to begin, the International AIDS Society (IAS) released a statement saying it was "deeply concerned by the high number of denied and pending visas by Canadian authorities."

"This is preventing many people from some of the countries most affected by HIV from entering Canada and attending AIDS 2022, including IAS staff and leadership."

African voices most needed

According to the World Health Organization, Africa is home to more than two-thirds of the global population living with HIV, the virus that progresses into AIDS.

Sam W. Pionlay is one of the delegates invited by the conference but denied a visa by Canada

That is why Sam W. Pionlay, 26, shares the concern about a global AIDS conference taking place with many voices from Africa missing.

Originally from Liberia, he is studying computer sciences in Morocco. He continues to advocate for young people, including those with HIV and AIDS, at home.

With an invitation from the IAS and sponsorship from a Delaware church, he was aiming to travel to the conference to present a paper on violence and HIV prevention for young people and sex workers. 

His rejection arrived on July 19, with the Canadian authorities stating in a letter that they were not "satisfied" that he would leave Canada and return to Morocco at the end of his trip. 

"It just doesn't make any sense," Pionlay told DW. "My work helping young people is here in Africa, I will be finishing my degree next year, why would I stay in Canada?

"This year's conference should have been an opportunity for Africans to participate. I'm really disappointed in Canada as a whole. I'm feeling frustrated."

Canada 'a difficult choice'

The visa difficulties have led to criticism of the choice of host country. David Ndikumana, Executive Director of the WEKA Organisation, which provides support to LGBTQ minorities and people with AIDS in the Democratic Republic of Congo, argued that such conferences should take place in countries that are more accessible.

David Ndikumana is critical of the choice of Canada as a host country

His organization received two invites to the conference but had yet to receive a response about visa applications. "I think what Canada is doing is a kind of discrimination," he told DW. He added that his group wrote a letter asking why only Canada is organizing this international conference. "Why not allow other countries?"

Ken Monteith, director general of Quebec AIDS charity COCQ-SIDA, also saw problems: "It certainly seems like Canada is a difficult choice on this issue," he wrote in an email. "We do have to bear in mind that there are populations that have difficulty obtaining visas for many countries in the north and the south."

IAS President Adeeba Kamarulzaman told DW that Canada was chosen after negotiations with a "middle-income" country were ended over attempts to influence the conference program. 

"Delayed and denied visas affect our ability to host a truly inclusive conference that is representative of communities most affected by HIV. The Conference Organizing Committee has escalated its concerns to the highest levels so that as many people who wish to attend AIDS 2022 are able to do so," she wrote.

Canada 'understands disappointment'

In an email to DW, Aidan Strickland, press secretary for Canada's Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said applications from around the world were "assessed equally and against the same criteria."

"We understand the disappointment that would result from some applicants not receiving their visas in time for the International AIDS Conference. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has taken every measure available to expedite as much as possible the processing of applications and facilitate travel for this event."

She added that IRCC had processed 91% of all applications received. A processed application can mean either an acceptance or rejection.

Strickland also pointed out that visa processing times can vary.

'If it's done in Africa, I will go'

Despite the furor over visas, there are still high hopes that the conference will lead to improved solutions for combating HIV and AIDS, especially given the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Those unable to attend the conference in person do have the opportunity to participate in certain events online.

Philomena Gori intends to take part in some virtual events, and plans to launch her charity as soon as possible. She also hopes one day to have the chance to take part in a similar conference much closer to home.

"If it's done in Africa, I will go. It will be much easier for me to attend."

Pan-African campaign launched to promote climate justice ahead of COP27

Ahram Online , Friday 29 Jul 2022

Pan-African social agency, Crtve DEVELOPMENT (CD), launched the WE!ARE initiative to build a pan-African voice on climate justice ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) slated for November in the Egyptian Red Sea city of Sharm El-Sheikh.

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The WE!ARE movement aims to inspire young people across the continent to share their vision of the Africa they want to see and voice the climate justice demands of their communities through creative mediums, a statement by the CD said on Friday.

The movement is championed by emerging and established creatives, policymakers, designers, visual artists, auditory artists and community leaders across Africa.

Collectively, the WE!ARE champions and supporters of the movement will shape the broader narrative of climate justice and centre important policy issues for the respective communities and nations leading into COP27 and beyond, according to the statement.

"With COP27 poised to take place in Egypt in November 2022, there has never been a better time for the continent to raise its voice in climate discourse. While contributing the least to climate change, the African continent is the hardest hit by the global climate crisis," the CD's statement added.

It is estimated that up to 118 million impoverished people will be exposed to drought, floods and extreme heat in Africa by 2030 if adequate response measures are not put in place, the statement added, citing Josefa Sacko, the AU commissioner for rural economy and agriculture.

The agency warned that those with the least capacity to cope and adapt to these impacts of climate change will face the most significant threat. 

Okito Wedi, founder and CEO of Crtve DEVELOPMENT, said despite the profound repercussions of climate change on the African citizens, climate justice remains one of the least understood and socialised policy themes in contemporary African development.

"Through the WE!ARE campaign, we want to harness the power of art and creativity to change the narrative on climate change and development in Africa and bridge the gap between communities who will most be affected and policymakers who will determine our climate future," he added.

To further highlight the importance of climate justice in Africa, Crtve DEVELOPMENT, in partnership with Africa No Filter, issued a call-out for creative participation in WE!ARE showcases that will resemble climate justice under the theme of "The Africa We Want To See."

Creative hubs in participating countries were invited to apply for grants to curate pop-up showcases and creative installations as well as the execution of three workshops using art and creativity as a tool for social change in local communities. 

Following a rigorous selection process, five hubs were selected in Egypt, South Africa, Mozambique and Nigeria, respectively, the statement added.

In Egypt, Perform Arts, which provides a training and educational service for performance arts, will organise a showcase focusing on maritime pollution and the disappearance of shorelines near Alexandria consisting of a photography exhibition in the Citadel of Qaitbay in Alexandria.

Music and singing will be integrated with storytelling to describe the environmental impact on human life, the CD added.

In preparation for the showcases, which will kick off in September 2022, all creative hubs will attend online and in-person training workshops to equip them with practical advice on climate-related policy education, community participation and media skills development.

Egypt has vowed to speak for the continent's aspirations in addressing the impacts of climate change at the COP27.

Egypt and the African Union are seeking to develop a unified vision for energy transformation in the continent ahead of COP27.

Hopes are pinned on COP27 to turn climate-related pledges into action to help facilitate the move to green energy in order to reduce harmful gas emissions and adapt to climate change as per the Paris Agreement.

The Paris Agreement – adopted at COP21 and signed by over 190 states including Egypt – came into effect in 2016 with the aim of limiting the rise in temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Climate finance has been debated at every COP meeting since as developed countries have failed to meet their promise to mobilise $100 billion annually by 2020 to help developing nations with mitigation and adaptation measures.

Africa produces no more than three percent of the world’s total greenhouse-gas emissions that cause global warming, according to experts.

Fathy Salama, Mahmoud El-Tohamy to hold a ‘Sufism vs Modernism’ concert

Ahram Online , Saturday 30 Jul 2022

Egyptian Grammy-winning music producer Fathy Salama and some members of his band Sharkiat will reunite with Islamic Sufi chanter Mahmoud El-Tohamy and a number of his musicians in another “Sufism vs Modernism” concert.

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The project — which aims to revive Islamic heritage in a new approach — will be introduced in a performance scheduled for Sunday 7 August at the Cairo Opera House’s Open Theatre.

The concert’s repertoire will include new arrangements for the pair’s known songs, including Qamarun, El-Burda, Umm El-Khier, Waggeh Fouadak Lel-Elah, Zedny Befart El-Hob, and Ana Moghram Behawah.

The godfather of many first-row indie bands and musicians, Salama — who played a vital role in shaping mainstream pop in the 1970s and 1980s — has paid special attention to traditional Islamic music since he formed Sharkiat in the 1980s and won a Grammy and a BBC award for another Sufi project with Senegalese music icon Youssou N’Dour.

The son of the famous Sufi chanter Sheikh Yassin El-Tohamy, Mahmoud mastered the deep-rooted Islamic musical art from early childhood, following in his father’s footsteps. He is also the founder of the Egyptian Association of Religious Hymns and Litanies, as well as the Prince Taz Palace School of Chanting and Music in Cairo.

The internationally acclaimed duo are reuniting in the Sufism vs Modernism Project, which was first launched in February 2018 before being developed in a few concerts in Cairo and Abu Dhabi.

Programme:
Sunday 7 August, 8pm
Open Theatre, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek

New orchestra goes on tour on Ukraine's 'cultural front'

AFP , Saturday 30 Jul 2022

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, the air raid sirens disrupt Svyatoslav Yanchuk's concerts, forcing musicians and audience members to seek refuge underground.

Musicians from the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra lead by conductor Kerii-Lynn Wilson take part in a rehearsal in Warsaw Opera before their international tour, July 28, 2022 (Photo: AFP)

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"When the alarm stops, we can return to the stage. When it lasts more than an hour, the concert is called off," said Yanchuk, a percussionist with the Odessa Philharmonic.

"It happens almost every concert," he said.

But in August, Yanchuk will finally be able to play without interruptions on an international trip with the newly created Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra.

Along with dozens of other musicians, Yanchuk will be on a tour of Europe and the United States, which started in Warsaw this week and will include the Proms in London on Sunday.

The orchestra, assembled from musical ensembles in Ukraine and Europe, is the brainchild of Canadian conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson, whose grandparents were from Ukraine.

Wilson was in Warsaw when the war broke out.

"As I witnessed the refugees streaming into Poland, I had a dream of uniting Ukrainian musicians in an artistic force to help them fight for their freedom," she said.

The project quickly took shape with the support of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw and Metropolitan Opera in New York.

Russian music 'on hold'

Despite never having played together before, the orchestra came up with a concert programme in just 10 days.

The concert starts with Ukrainian composer Valentyn Sylvestrov's Symphony No. 7 -- a homage to the victims of the war.

There is "no Russian music", according to orchestra members, whose lives and careers have been turned upside down by the war.

"Russia has geniuses but whatever comes from Russian culture is on hold for the moment," said bassoon player Mark Kreshchenskiy.

Kreshchenskiy and his brother Dmytro, a violist, played for the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra in Russia for eight years and were there when the invasion began.

"We left Russia in the first days of the invasion. It was hard but there was no other decision to take," Kreshchenskiy told AFP.

The two brothers fled to neighbouring Estonia, carrying their instruments.

Ukraine has stopped all fighting-age men from leaving the country under martial law in case they have to be drafted, but some orchestra members have temporary permission to do so.

"I was able to see my 10-year-old daughter again after five months of separation because she is a pupil at the Gdansk Opera" in northern Poland, said Dmytro Ilin, from the Kyiv Philharmonic.

Once the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra tour is over, Ilin will return to Kyiv -- along with percussionist Yevgen Ulyanov, whose son was born when the war broke out.

"My son is waiting for me," he said.

'Cultural front'

Like many of their colleagues, Ilin and Ulyanov want to continue practising their craft in their native country.

"I have the feeling that we are soldiers of music because we are doing our best at the cultural front," said Nazar Stets, a double bass player and Kyiv resident.

Stets is particularly keen on the Ukrainian repertoire, saying: "It's now the time to play even more Ukrainian music".

"If we don't play our Ukrainian music, nobody will," he said.

Asked if music could really be a weapon, Ilin said: "Since childhood, music has been what we do. We have to act in one way or another".

Vampires of the modern times: Italian Etoile Ballet Theater in Egypt

Nevine Lamei, Friday 29 Jul 2022

In their first visit to Egypt, the Italian company Etoile Ballet Theater performs Vampiri at the Cairo and Alexandria Opera House.

Ballet in two acts and eleven scenes, Vampiri (Vampires) stages a total of four performances taking us to the misadventures of Dorian (Walter Angelini), a young boy, and Ambrosia (Ines Albertini), the seductive queen of vampires who gains the attention and emotions of Dorian, her new victim.

Written and choreographed by Albertini and Angelini, the artistic directors and principal dancers of the Etoile Ballet Theatre, Vampiri premiered in Italy and was then staged internationally. 

The ballet’s story is soaked in many emotions which are at the base of movement that relies on supple, elegant and graceful sensitivity, topped with passionate and energetic scenes.

All is packaged to pieces taken from the classical music repertoire,  Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, alongside composers such as Karl Jenkins and others.

Through their dance, Ines Albertini and Walter Angelini ask numerous questions such as: Is love between a human and a vampire possible? The answer comes through the choreography.

This is not the first creative encounter of the pair, also a married couple. They both worked as artistic directors and principal dancers of the US International Ballet (2017 – 2020) before they founded their own company Etoile Ballet Theatre in September 2020.

The repertoire of the latter, with innovative neo-classical and contemporary choreographies, fuses theatrical work on the characters and role-playing. The performances are suitable for the audiences of all ages and cultural backgrounds.

The same approach characterises the company’s previous productions such as Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, Scheherazade, Snow Maiden, The Seasons of Love, etc.

Appearing several centuries ago, and perhaps even several millennia, the myth of the vampire continues to incite a dosage of anxiety of the finest minds. Their presence in theatre, films or a dance work is often accompanied with images of blood.

The dramaturgy of Vampiri is inspired by the story of Elizabeth Bathory, nicknamed The Bloody Countess, and Count Dracula. This powerful fantasy drama, Vampiri opens with Ambrosia bathing in the blood of her victims, feeding on psychic energy, to feel rejuvenated and beautiful. The scene is followed by the vampires arrival on stage which projects the magic evoking a classic feel of the Eastern European Renaissance era.

The viewer sees in Ambrosia the evil influence that she exercises on those around her. She does so with lighting underscoring the blood red color setting background to a number of dance pieces, such as tango and the dance of love.

Based in Piacenza, Italy, the Etoile Ballet Theater resides at the Piacenza Art Ballet, in a 400 m2 building, dedicated solely to dance. The company brings together professional ballet dancers from different nationalities, many of them being graduates of the companies training programme. It is through those trainings that Albertini and Angelini work on improving and perfecting the dancers’ technique.

The company keeps welcoming new dancers for its upcoming shows.

A tribute to Egypt’s demolished houseboats

Fatemah Farag , Tuesday 12 Jul 2022

New concepts of urban development will claim the Nile bank in Imbaba after the removal of what remained of Cairo’s houseboats last week.

Photo credit Yasmine ElRashidi

“Love is an old and worn-out game, but it is a sport on the houseboat [..] And the moon is a satellite, dead and cold, but on the houseboat, it is poetry” 

- Adrift on the Nile, Naguib Mahfouz

Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz lived on a houseboat for some 25 years. His elder daughter was born on one, and it was from his home on the Nile that he wrote Adrift on the Nile, which is considered one of his most important novels. 

On 18 June, I received alarming video coverage taken by a friend from Zamalek across the Nile from the KitKat, which was where the houseboats had been moored since the mid-1960s.

The video showed the demolition of a houseboat, and it was the beginning of a flurry of frantic messages. These included over the coming days a copy of the letter dated 22 June from the General Manager of the General Administration for Nile Protection in Greater Cairo to 50 houseboat owners informing them of demolitions that would take place on 28 June and the frantic voice note of one houseboat owner saying: “Help! They are outside pulling all of these lovely boats down!”

For days, talk show hosts reminded us of the history of the boats, international media outlets descended on the Nile to cover the story, and petitions made their rounds.  The government responded and informed the public that the houseboats were dilapidated beyond repair and an environmental hazard.

Ayman Nour, the head of the General Administration for Nile Protection in Greater Cairo — a government body responsible for removing any encroachments on the river — told the press that a government decision had in fact been made as far back as 2020 to ban the registration of any residential houseboats.

This would explain what the houseboat owners described as obstacles in recent years, including a decision to increase the fees they pay by 20-fold and the refusal of authorities to accept money from them. While the houseboats were private properties, owners paid rental fees for the land and the docks in which they were moored.

Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Mohamed Abdel-Ati stated that the ministry will continue the campaign to remove homes moored along the river that are “in clear violation of the law… A clear message to those who transgress on the Nile.” He made this statement as residents were being informed that they could stay if they became commercial entities. 

Today, the poetic nature of Cairo’s houseboats that was so aptly described by Mahfouz is no more. In the wake of these demolitions, a small community of families and small businesses have been left in disarray and without compensation to date. 

And you did not have to live in a houseboat to feel the loss. Those of us who grew up watching popular films — now labelled classics — who heard the stories and lore of their colourful past, many of which are enshrined in contemporary Arabic literature and history, feel the angst of this loss.  

Our connection to the Nile and these boats goes far back. In pharaonic times, boats were designed for long recreational trips, the dahabiiya is perhaps the sailing form of the houseboat, and the ones we have just lost were built on floating metal containers held together by wooden or metal beams and meant to be stationary.

The rich from as far back as the Ottomans often took houseboats as a second residence and a place to entertain guest. During the second World War, British officers lived on houseboats, and the awamat were home to celebrities and power couples such as singer and cabaret owner Badiya Masabny and her husband famous actor Naguib El-Riyhani. It was also where government officials and policy influencers came to be entertained and discuss the state’s affairs.  

It is a history that has suffered neglect; the only study to be found is one that was published online in 2010 by Islam Nabil in Arabic and disparate pieces here and there.

There are only the images that were enshrined in movies such as Ayam wi Liyali, where Abdel-Halim Hafez sang the heart rendering I Am With you Forever, which was composed by Mohamed Abdel-Wahab. 

The date 1966 signals the beginning of the demise of houseboats, when a decision by the prime minister at the time moved them from shores of Zamalek and Dokki to Imbaba; a move protested by their owners at the time, who argued that the value of their properties would depreciate by moving them to a more populated quarter of town.

Many owners sold or left their houseboats at the time, leaving them to fall into disrepair. A tragic example is that of Farid El-Atrash’s famously ornate houseboat, which could have become a museum but instead was left derelict until it was demolished years ago. And a community of several hundred houseboats dwindled to the more than 30 that were removed recently.

In his study, Nabil tells us that houseboat 20 was owned by actor Salah El-Saadany, and it has been featured in many prominent Egyptian films. It also says that poet Hafez Ibrahim was called the ‘Poet of the Nile’ because he was born on one in 1872, and that during World War II, dancer and spy Hekmat Fahmy used her home on a houseboat to lure drunk senior officers to extract information. 

It was a mixed history bringing together intrigue, glamour, intellectual, and not-so-intellectual pursuits. It also brought together those who looked to escape the bustle of the city yet remain within it. Crossing the small bridges between the main streets of the KitKat District and the houseboats transported you from the noise and bustle to a tranquil world. A world many people like the now famous 88-year-old Ikhlas — who remains in the only houseboat left standing, as the government has pledged to relocate her — chose to embrace as a home. 

And so, we are left with the fleeting tokens of memory. Like the voice of Hafez as he sang to his lover on the terrace of a houseboat many years ago: “The Nile, the night, love, and longing sent to me, and I came to ask about you; I miss you and miss your eyes and do not know how to escape from you…” And miss you — no doubt — we will.

'New Cold War': Russia and West vie for influence in Africa: AP report

AP , Saturday 30 Jul 2022

Russian, French and American leaders are crisscrossing Africa to win support for their positions on the war in Ukraine, waging what some say is the most intense competition for influence on the continent since the Cold War.

In this file photo local residents are carrying boxes and sacks of food distributed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), in Kachoda, Turkana area, northern Kenya, July 23, 2022. Russian, French and American leaders are crisscrossing Africa to win support for their positions on the war in Ukraine. AP

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and French President Emmanuel Macron are each visiting several African countries this week. Samantha Power, head of the U.S. Agency for International Development, went to Kenya and Somalia last week. The U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Linda Thomas-Greenfield, will go to Ghana and Uganda next week.

``It's like a new Cold War is playing out in Africa, where the rival sides are trying to gain influence,'' said William Gumede, director of Democracy Works, a foundation promoting good governance.

Lavrov, in his travels across the continent where many countries are suffering drought and hunger, has sought to portray the West as the villain, blaming it for rising food prices, while the Western leaders have accused the Kremlin of cynically using food as a weapon and waging an imperial-style war of conquest, words calculated to appeal to listeners in post-colonial Africa.

Under President Vladimir Putin, Russia has been working to win support in Africa for several years, reinvigorating friendships that date back a half-century, when the Soviet Union backed many African movements fighting to end colonial rule.

``Now that campaign has gone into high gear,'' Gumede said.

Moscow's influence in Africa was on display in March during the U.N. vote to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While 28 African nations voted in favor of the resolution, a significant minority of countries on the continent, 25, either voted to abstain or did not vote at all.

Russia's top diplomat this week visited Egypt, Congo, Uganda and Ethiopia, pledging friendship and charging the U.S. and European countries with driving up food prices by pursuing ``reckless'' environmental policies. He also accused them of hoarding food during the COVID-19 pandemic.

``The situation in Ukraine did additionally negatively affect food markets, but not due to the Russian special operation, rather due to the absolutely inadequate reaction of the West, which announced sanctions,'' Lavrov said in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital.

Lavrov was warmly received in Uganda by President Yoweri Museveni, who for years has been a U.S. ally but has refused to criticize Russia over the invasion. Museveni even suggested at the outbreak of the war that Putin's actions might be understandable because Ukraine is in Russia's sphere of influence.

Lavrov voiced support for reform of the U.N. Security Council to give African countries permanent seats and greater influence.

Appearing with Lavrov, the Ugandan leader spoke fondly of old ties with Russia, asking how he could spurn Moscow when he has good relations with countries that participated in slavery.

Museveni, an opinion leader on the continent who has held power for three decades, is an obvious choice for Russia as someone to strengthen ties with, said Ugandan political analyst Asuman Bisiika.

``Uganda is the center of gravity in East Africa,'' Bisiika said.

Museveni, 77, has been strictly wearing a mask in public since the COVID-19 outbreak. But he did not have one on when greeting Lavrov in front of photographers, apparently wanting to show warmth to the Russian. Museveni had a mask back on in his next public appearance a day later.

Russia is also courting African public opinion through its state television network, RT, formerly known as Russia Today. RT has announced that it will open a new bureau in Johannesburg.

RT was abruptly removed from Africa's biggest pay-TV platform in Africa, Johannesburg-based Multichoice, in March after the European Union and Britain imposed sanctions against Russia. It is not clear whether establishing the new bureau will enable RT to resume broadcasts to Africa through Multichoice, which claims nearly 22 million subscribers on the continent.

``For Russia, it is the battle to be heard in Africa. It is not important for the actual war effort but for their long-term political influence,`` Anton Harber, professor of journalism at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. ``They see it as fertile ground to cultivate their influence, and, of course, votes in the U.N. are important.``

On his tour of Africa, France's Macron accused the Kremlin of using TV channels like RT to spread propaganda in support of the war. And he charged the Kremlin with blackmailing the world by thwarting the export of grain from Ukraine.

``They are blackmailing because they are the ones who blocked cereals in Ukraine. They are the ones who regulate their cereals,'' he said in Benin. His itinerary also included Cameroon and Guinea-Bissau.

Macron appealed to Africans to side against Russia.

``I'm telling you here in Africa, a continent that has suffered from colonial imperialism: Russia is one of the last colonial, imperial powers. She decides to invade a neighboring country to defend her interests,'' he said. ``That's the reality.''

Power, the top U.S. AID official, was in East Africa to pledge aid to help the region's fight against hunger amid a devastating multi-year drought. She did not hold back in criticizing Russia.

``By blockading Ukraine's grain exports and restricting the trade of Russia's own fertilizer, Putin's actions have had the consequence of inflicting pain on the people of Kenya and on other countries throughout the world,`` Power said in Nairobi. ``He is hurting the people of Kenya in order to benefit his own situation.''