The Russian president has been exploring partnership opportunities following a week of initiatives during which some 48 delegations came to Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding a series of bilateral meetings with African leaders at the Kremlin on Friday, following the third Russia-Africa Summit.

The talks involve African heads of state, including from Sudan, Madagascar, Ghana, Mali, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Eritrea, as well as the prime minister of Togo.

The meetings follow the two-day summit, held in Moscow on October 28-29, which focused on expanding trade, investment, energy, security, and humanitarian cooperation between Russia and African nations.

During Friday’s talks with Sudan’s Sovereign Council Chairman Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the Sudanese leader proposed establishing a free economic zone on the Red Sea for Russian fuel and wheat storage facilities, as well as cooperation on a railway linking Port Sudan to Chad.

Burhan…