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June 17 (UPI) -- Several African leaders met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on Saturday, hoping to help bring an end to the war in Ukraine. A statement released by the office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa confirmed his arrival in St. Petersburg, alongside the leaders of Zambia, the Comoros, Congo Brazzaville, Egypt, Senegal, and Uganda.
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The delegation is seeking "a road to peace to the 16 months long conflict between Ukraine and Russia which has thus caused devastating economic impact, loss of life and global instability."
Russian state news agency TASS reported that the meetings lasted for three hours.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the African leaders understand the root causes of the Ukraine crisis, "which was created by the West's efforts."
"They have shown an understanding that this situation has to be resolved by grappling with those root causes, by working out specific real actions to eliminate the causes that are undermining and have been undermining fair security in Europe throughout many years," Lavrov said.
The same leaders visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Friday. However, they were forced to take shelter in bunkers as Russian airstrikes hit the city.
Zelensky has repeatedly ruled out any negotiations until Russian troops withdraw from the country.
"Today, I have clearly said repeatedly at our meeting that to allow any negotiations with Russia now that the occupier is on our land means to freeze the war, to freeze pain and suffering," he told journalists in a press conference after the meeting, according to CNN.
