Russia will increase the number of military instructors in Burkina Faso, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday during a trip to the West African nation.

“Russian instructors are working here, and their number will increase; at the same time, we are training members of the armed forces and law enforcement agencies of Burkina Faso in the Russian Federation,” Lavrov said in the capital city of Ouagadougou. “Here, Russian instructors are working; their number will increase.”

Russia furthermore intends to supply Burkina Faso with military products to strengthen the country’s defense capability, he said.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday posted a photo of Lavrov in Ouagadougou, noting that he had been received by acting President Ibrahim Traoré. Lavrov was accompanied on the trip by Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yevkurov.

Burkina Faso is currently under military rule after a junta staged a coup d’état in July 2022. Its junta, headed by Traoré, has said it is prioritizing building up security amid an ongoing and deadly internal conflict.

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/06/05/af...