Macron made his appeal on Tuesday at a press conference in the Cameroonian capital Yaoundé, where he was a guest of his counterpart Paul Biya. The French president is on a tour of Africa and later visits Benin and Guinea-Bissau. He spoke there about the war in Ukraine and the global food crisis, but also about the security situation in Africa itself. After the French retreat from Mali earlier this year, Macron wants to convince African countries that they can work together for the security of the continent.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has also visited a number of countries in Africa in recent days, including Congo, Uganda and Egypt. He emphasized there that the Russian position on Ukraine is justified and that the food shortages are due to Western sanctions. Macron said that Russia is consciously using food as a weapon of war and that Africa in particular is the victim.