Description: Russian energy Minister, Sergei Tsivilev, led a delegation of Russian officials to Niger, where an agreement was signed between Russia’s Rosatom and Niger’s Energy Ministry for the development of a civil nuclear program. Representatives from Russia’s state – owned atomic energy company, Rosatom and officials from Niger’s ministry of energy signed a memorandum of understanding, which outlines cooperation in the field of nuclear development for Niger’s energy supply demands. The agreement arrives two years after Russia started accumulating political capital in Niger, through direct military support of the country’s governing military junta. Tsivilev also reportedly met with Niger’s de facto President, General Abdourahamane Tiani, and discussed the potential of establishing an intergovernmental commission focused on trade and other venues of economic cooperation.
Impact: Russia’s growing influence in Africa, especially in the Sahel, arrives as the result of the strategic ineptness by the US and its European allies regarding the African continent. Russia’s activities in the Sahel represent long – term strategic projects aimed at ensuring economic independence and solidifying crucial areas in resource – rich countries within the African continent. Niger joins Mali which recently concluded a similar agreement for the development of a civil nuclear program, which represents a high level of bilateral strategic partnership with Russia. Indications of the expansion of the partnership towards various other sectors signals that Russia aims to develop closely interconnected ties between the countries in the Sahel through which it could establish strategic dominance and regional operational capabilities in terms of intelligence gathering and covert operations, as well as the development of economic cooperation on a national level.