Iranian Presidents Ebrahim Raisi and Kenyan President William Ruto pledged to strengthen ties between their two countries on Wednesday in Nairobi, the first leg of an Iranian leader’s first African tour in 11 years.
The trip, which was originally scheduled to start on Tuesday but was postponed for a day, comes as Tehran tries to break its diplomatic isolation by finding new allies on the international scene.
Mr. Raisi, welcomed in the morning by Mr. Ruto, must then go to later in the day to Uganda, where he will meet his counterpart Yoweri Museveni, then will be in Zimbabwe on Thursday, to meet with President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Africa has become a more intense diplomatic battleground in recent months between the West and Russia, at loggerheads since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and each trying to rally African countries to their sides. The latter has been hit hard by the sharp rises in prices, food in particular, recorded since then.
After he met with Mr. Ruto, Mr. Raisi described to the press his visit to Kenya as “a turning point in the development of relations between the two countries”, adding that these discussions had reflected “the determination” of the two countries to “extend their economic, commercial, political and cultural cooperation”.
Iran and Kenya Strengthen Ties with Bilateral Signing of Memorandums of Understanding
Mr. Ruto for his part described Iran as “an essential strategic partner of Kenya” and announced the bilateral signing of five memorandums of understanding in various sectors including information technology, investment promotion, and fisheries.
“These protocols will further develop and deepen our bilateral relationship to enable more sustained growth and development between our two countries”, he added.
Mr. Ruto added that Mr. Raisi had informed him of the Iranian plan to set up a factory in the port city of Mombasa (south) “to produce an Iranian-made vehicle called ‘Kifaru’.
According to the official Iranian news agency IRNA, Mr. Raisi is accompanied in Africa by his head of diplomacy and by a delegation of businessmen.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani described the tour as a “new starting point” that could boost economic and trade ties between Tehran and African countries. Iran and the three countries visited this week also have “common political views”, he said on Monday.
Tehran has at the same time strengthened its ties with China and Russia as part of a strategy turned towards the East, while relations remain tense with the West, despite indirect discussions with Washington, particularly on nuclear power.
Last week, Iran joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional structure created in 2001 of which China and Russia are founding members.