Central African president says pressure won't change Russia ties
Touadera said Russian instructors helped his army stop a violent seizure of power by militants in 2020 and 2021.
Pressure and efforts to discredit his country's cooperation with Russia would not alter its direction, in an interview with Russia's state news agency TASS, Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadera said on Monday.
Touadera said the partnership rests on "real needs" in security and development rather than on short-term considerations.
He said Russian instructors had helped the Central African army prevent a violent seizure of power by militants in the country.
He also said Russian instructors helped ensure that elections were held in 2020 and 2021, when, in his words, the existence of the constitutional order was under threat.
Russia has been one of the Central African Republic's main security partners since the late 2010s, when the two countries expanded military cooperation.
Moscow's presence in the country has drawn criticism from Western governments and rights groups, which have raised concerns about its role in the country's security forces.
The Central African Republic has struggled with armed groups for more than a decade, particularly since a rebellion in 2013 that toppled the government of the time.
Touadera has led the country since 2016, and his government has sought outside help to rebuild its army and extend state control beyond the capital.
