ISTANBUL 

Ukraine’s foreign minister announced on Wednesday that his country’s embassy in Ghana has begun operations amid Kyiv’s efforts to expand its diplomatic presence on the African continent.

“Last year, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, tasked the Ukrainian diplomatic service with opening new embassies in Africa. I am happy to announce that the first of these has already started operations in Ghana,” Dmytro Kuleba said, according to a statement by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.

Expressing that an embassy has been opened in Rwanda as part of this task, the statement quoted Kuleba as saying that Ukraine has received all permits to open embassies in Mozambique, Mauritania, Botswana, Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan.

“This is part of our strategy for developing relations with African countries, the Ukrainian-African renaissance, and countering Russian influence in the world. Expanding the diplomatic presence will also open up new opportunities for the Ukrainian state, business and citizens,” Kuleba further said.

Kuleba stated that the embassy in the Ghanaian capital Accra will function at the level of chargé d'affaires until an ambassador is appointed, and will serve to “develop political contacts, strengthen economic ties, and provide consular services for Ukrainians and Ghanaians.”

“According to Dmytro Kuleba, the next countries in which the Ukrainian flag will be raised over the new Ukrainian embassies will be Rwanda, Mozambique, and Botswana. In total, Ukraine plans to open ten new embassies in Africa,” the statement concluded.

In May, Kuleba wrote in a column that his country’s diplomats are “rediscovering continents and regaining lost positions” in order to strengthen Ukraine’s global influence and economy, adding that Kyiv is continuing its “political counteroffensive” in order to strengthen its position on all continents, particularly the Global South.