Iranian Pres. Raisi Begins Africa Tour With Kenya, Uganda Visits

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Facts

  • Iranian Pres. Ebrahim Raisi kicked off a three-day visit to Africa on Wednesday, making his first stops in Kenya and Uganda to discuss trade with Pres. William Ruto. Raisi is set to visit  Zimbabwe in the first Iranian state visit to Africa in a decade.1
  • Describing the visit as 'a turning point,' Raisi and Ruto signed five memoranda of understanding covering information technology, investment, fisheries, and other areas.2
  • While Kenya desires to increase agricultural exports to Iran beyond their primary export of tea, Iran plans to open a vehicle manufacturing facility in the port city of Mombasa.3
  • After departing from Kenya, Raisi met with Ugandan Pres. Yoweri Museveni, where he spoke against the West's LGBTQ+ stance. Uganda recently passed legislation prescribing the death penalty for 'aggravated homosexuality.'3
  • Iran has struggled economically since the US reinstated sanctions on it in 2018, with Raisi touring several Latin American countries affected by US sanctions in June. A cost of living crisis has gripped Kenya while Uganda and Zimbabwe remain under US sanctions.1
  • Kenya is a strategic ally for the US in East Africa, with First Lady Jill Biden visiting the country earlier this year. Uganda, with large uranium reserves, is a US security ally that has also voiced support for Iran's nuclear program, a source of tension between Iran and the West.4

Sources: 1Al Jazeera, 2France 24, 3Associated Press and 4Abc news.

Narratives

  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Mehr news agency. African countries are waking up to the neo-colonial ways of the West, and it's inevitable that cooperation between Iran and Africa will increase in light of the onerous conditions they both face from Western imperialism. With shared cultural backgrounds and policy goals of non-alignment, African countries and Iran have much to share with one another through a deepening of relations.
  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Iran international. Iran's adversarial relationship with the West has put it on the road to ruin, and Tehran's world tour of other struggling countries will do little to alleviate its economic hardship. Iran faces a widespread economic crisis of its own making, as the West cannot and should not dignify its oppressive regime. If Raisi wants to boost the Iranian economy, he should stop their nuclear program and end their antagonistic disposition toward the West in order to see the crippling sanctions lifted.

Predictions