My Krossroads

The Russian Amb.  Alexander Polyakov on the country’s foreign policy with Nigeria……

Nigeria is regarded as a strategic partner on the African continent, we simply take into consideration the fact that Nigeria is the most populated country in the so called sub Saharan or black Africa and it plays an outstanding role in maintaining peace and democratic unity particularly in the West African region and on the continent as a whole. Nigeria is the most contributor to the peace process in the African continent.

When our President visited your esteemed President last year Shuhu Yaradua, I wish him speedy recovery. The necessity of strengthening political dialogue, economic and humanitarian co-operation between our two countries on all exiting levels was adequately addressed. We on our part are to ensure follow up, to the principal basic agreement agreed at last year’s bilateral summit.

WHAT ARE THE DIRECTIONS OR PRIORITIES IN YOUR DIMPLOMATIC ACTIVITIES SINCE ASSUMPTION OFFICE?

I have spent a little more than a year and a half in Nigeria. From the very beginning, I mean after presenting my credential to the president I was aware that my main task was to prepare in a proper way, to organize and to assist in the successful holding of the first ever bilateral summit meeting in the history of Russia, Nigeria relations which happened on the 24^th of June last year. I mean the visit of the President of Russia his Excellency to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It was really a great political event and a great success in our assesment because we managed to sign not less than six agreements and to achieve basic accord on very important political, economic issues and humanitarian issues. At the time I was also instructed to promote our bilateral relations in every possible area. I had the honour to resume the work of our inter governmental joint commission on economic ,scientific and technical co-operation which coincided with the visit of the honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs , Chief Ojo Madueke to Moscow last March and other important visits of other state agencies including the visits of the Ministers of Justice and Science and technology.  Which Included, the very many important contacts within our state and other agencies.

HOW WOULD YOU ARGUE THAT THE VSISIT OF YOUR PRESIDENT HAS INDEED OPENED A NEW CHAPTER IN THE RUSSIAN –NIGERIAN RELATIOSN?

I would like to believe so and I have some background to believe we really managed to open a new chapter in our bilateral relations, despite our very favorable historic background and traditions.

HOW WOULD YOU OUTLINE THE STAGES OF IMPLEMENTING BUSINESS AGREEMENTS SIGNED BY THE TWO PRESIDENTS IN JUNE?

An example is the important agreement, IPPA(The Investment Promotion Protection Agreement) it is to be rectified by the Parliament and  by the two countries and I am happy to state that our Parliament, the Russian Parliament, the lower Chamber(the duma) is ready to start the process of rectification. As soon as we have this very important agreement rectified, it will be a very much improved legal environment for Russian investors in Nigeria. First of all because of our economic partners, the process of investments is supposed to be a little bit one sided, this brings me to another very important agreement signed not between our state agencies but between the economic co-operators, I mean the NNPC and the Russian State Company Gastro.

They succeeded in making their joint venture Inco-operated. They already built up the structures of the joint ventures, they accepted a plan of the shortlist of the most prospective projects and they are working very hard just now in Abuja on making those projects operational.

By the way a third important agreement is the intergovernmental agreement on the calculation on the peaceful use of nuclear energy. We just received a letter of the NLP ( Nationl) headed by Prof.  Langba that the esteemed Nigerian side has completed the formation of its part of the joint committee or joint working group necessary for implantation of the agreement and is working on the proposals on how to develop our co-operation on this sensitive and important area. We are just making our first steps in this area, but we are very optimistic because if our plans come through , it would mean investments of up to 2.5 billion US dollars within a very few years and this will be investment not so much in the oil and gas extraction (mining) in the so called mainstream , I mean this will be investment in every kind of thing, infrastructure including building pipelines, the creation or modernization of electricity, of electrical power generation in different or sometimes remote areas of the country and last but not the least the Russian assistance to the geological exploration and investigation of oil and gas resources especially in the North of Nigeria.

WHAT IS THE LEVEL OF RUSSIA’S ENGAGEMENT IN OTHER SIGNIFICANT AREAS OR SECTORS IN THE ECONOMY OF NIGERIA?

We would like to be represented in, if not all sectors but the basic sectors of the Nigerian economy, I must mention already existing investment , the Aluminum Smelting Plant in Akwa Ibom State, despite all the difficulties remains operational and building up its strategy of achieving its full capacity in a rather short time.

We would like to possibly try our means and methods in some limited areas in one of the central state in Nigeria, if it is a success, then we spread our activities to all the Nigerian states.

DO YOU THINK THE RUSSIAN MARKET SHOULD NOW OPEN ITS MARKET S TO NIGERIAN PRODUCTS?

Russian market is already open to Nigerian products. We not only provide the status of the most favorable nation to your country on a unilateral basis, which means at least 25% decrease in the level in the fees paid by the exporters but we provide some special not on a bilateral basis but on a unilateral basis . Though we regard Nigeria as a developing African country, it is viewed as one of the most favorable nation states in their trade with Russia. So your exporters can supply almost everything, though we have some technical provision which is sometimes very important and of course procedures are not easy. These I believe are the main obstacles for the Nigerian exporters and not trade barriers mounted by the Russian side.

HOW POSSIBLE IS IT FOR NIGERIAN BUSINESS MEN OR EXPORTERS TO BE GIVEN SOME TRADE PREFENTIALS SIMILAR TO AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITIES ACT (AGOA) OFFERED BY THE UNITED STATES?

It depends on the Nigerian exporter if someone is interested in exporting goods to Russia, he or she is in a position to adjust to technicalities on ground. The problem is that majority of Nigerian business men are trying to bring Russian investors and investment to Nigeria, trying to play the role of mediator, facilitator. This is the problem and not that any obstacles exist for the Nigerian business man.

IN YOUR OBJECTIVE VIEW, WHAT HAS GENERALLY ACCOUNTED FOR LOW LEVEL OF AFRICAN TRADE IN RUSSIA’S VAST MARKET COMPARED TO ASIAN COUNTRIES DESPITE THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES EXISTING THERE?

Russian market is a huge one with great opportunities. It is the biggest in terms of territory so if you cannot succeed say in Moscow or St. Petersburg; you can succeed somewhere else maybe in the Far East. The Asian partners do not concentrate their efforts much in the central region of our country but on Siberia, the Far East where they have practically no competitors. Russia is a competitive country.  For Nigeria, the problem is of a different character.  Though, our economies are not complementary, we do meet on the platform of OPEC and the new organization, the forum of gas exporting countries. At the same time it is difficult to export oil or gas to each other’s country. It is very clear that Nigeria has lost its leading position in the Russian Market, a position it occupied in the sixties and seventies.

Finally, the deeper we go in investment cooperation, the more advantages both countries will have.