President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a phone conversation with Gambian President Adama Barrow, resuming “contact at the highest level” between Ukraine and Gambia after a 20-year hiatus, according to Zelenskyy’s X.
Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for Gambia’s presence at the Peace Summit and its support for the final communiqué.
The two leaders discussed potential avenues for cooperation between Ukraine and Africa in restoring peace and ensuring food security.
“It is important for us to remain one of the key guarantors of food security for Africa and the world,” Zelenskyy wrote.
In 2023, British intelligence warned that Russia’s war in Ukraine would worsen Africa’s food security due to disrupted grain supplies and rising prices.
In April, Russian forces also attacked the port of Pivdennyi in Ukraine’s Odesa Oblast, destroying grain storage facilities and agricultural products intended for Asia and Africa, causing over $300 million in damages and affecting nearly 1,000 jobs.
Zelenskyy also highlighted that before Russia’s full-scale invasion, Gambian students studied in Ukraine, and he invited them again to safer oblasts in Ukraine.
Who signed Ukraine’s Global Peace Summit
Following the conclusion of the Peace Summit in June, an additional 10 countries joined the final communiqué, including Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Rwanda, Somalia, Suriname, Zambia, and Malawi, in addition to Gambia.
80 countries and four international organizations signed a communiqué endorsing a framework for peace in Ukraine, including Serbia and Hungary, currently run by Russian-aligned governments.
However, several countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Thailand, India, Mexico, South Africa, Armenia, Bahrain, Brazil, Qatar, Vatican City, Indonesia, Colombia, Libya, and the United Arab Emirates, did not sign the final document.
Iraq and Jordan initially signed but later withdrew their signatures.
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