Moscow and Sahel state in talks to open direct flights

Burkina Faso’s ambassador to Russia has told TASS the move is in response to growing bilateral cooperation in tourism and culture

Burkina Faso and Russia are discussing plans to launch direct flights between their capitals aimed at boosting tourism, the West African country’s envoy has said, according to TASS.

Burkinabe Ambassador to Russia Aristide Tapsoba reportedly announced the negotiations in an interview on the sidelines of the ongoing international forum on technological development, Technoprom-2025, in Novosibirsk.

“We already have a Russian company that wants to launch direct flights between Ouagadougou and Moscow, between the capitals of Mali and Niger and Moscow. This is currently being discussed,” Tapsoba told TASS.

The envoy highlighted growing cooperation between Ouagadougou and Moscow in tourism and culture, noting that exchanges are already under way. He said a Burkinabe delegation of over 500 people is due to travel to St. Petersburg in October to work in the fields of tourism and the economy.

More than 500 Russians have also visited Burkina Faso since the beginning of 2025; some attended the Festival of Cinema and Television of African Countries in Ouagadougou, where a Russian symphony orchestra performed, Tapsoba noted.

“And the presidential orchestra of Burkina Faso is now here in Moscow. So the relations have already begun, and I believe that they will develop,” the diplomat added.

Russia has recently stepped up cooperation with several African nations across multiple sectors – including aviation, road, rail, and maritime transport – after declaring the development of mutually beneficial partnerships with the continent a foreign policy priority.

Late in June, Russian Deputy Transport Minister Dmitry Zverev met his Moroccan counterpart, Abdessamad Kayouh, at the Global Forum on Transport Connectivity in Istanbul and discussed increasing the frequency of flights between the two countries in response to rising demand.

Aside from Morocco, the Russian official held high-level meetings with Djibouti and Egypt, reaching agreements to deepen cooperation, particularly on regulatory frameworks and knowledge-sharing in sustainable and innovative transport.

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