Importation of wheat from Russia

RECENTLY, industries stakeholders called on Federal Government to suspend the 15 per cent levy on wheat grain importation from the two top wheat exporting countries namely Russia and Ukraine. Reuters also reported that Nigeria plans to import 105,000 tonnes of potash from Russia and Canada ‘to help avert any shortfall in output from its fertilizer plants’. Justifying the decision to buy from Russia, the head of the Nigeria’s Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) reportedly even noted that “We have a total of 105,000 metric tonnes of potash coming into the country. Subsequently more supplies will come from Russia because it saves us time for the vessels to come in than from central Canada”. I reckon that it is most certainly inconceivable that at a time when the larger part of the world has imposed economic sanctions on Russia due to its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, particularly to limit its capacity to sustain the war, Nigeria would consider it an option to transact with Russia despite the existence of other viable options for commerce.

In one of the previous editions, I made a special appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to leverage on Nigeria’s position in the African Union to intervene in the war. In the actual performance of its role of positioning Africa in the global economy and in international negotiations, the voice and impact of the African Union must be heard and felt in the comity of nations. After all, the war in Ukraine will, no doubt, cast a long shadow across Africa. While the African Union may not be able to donate weapons and relief materials to Ukraine, it can, at least initiate a role in world peace. Therefore, in the interest of the African continent, Nigeria must play an active role in bringing the African Union to facilitating or participating in bilateral peace discussions between Russia and Ukraine. However, it is hard to see how the purchase of wheat and potash from Russia will serve any role in bringing the Ukrainian war to an end.

It is important to note that the war in Ukraine is nothing more than just a test run for other nefarious plans which Putin might have for the larger European community. I had once referred to the statement of the former Ukrainian President, Poroshenko, as far back as 2015 when a report stated: “Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko today accused his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of wanting to take over the “whole of Europe” and potentially aiming his sights next at Finland and the Baltics. Putin wants to go as far as we allow him – not only Ukraine, but the whole of Europe. If you had asked me two years ago, I would have said this was impossible because the whole postwar security system wouldn’t allow that. But if you asked me today… unfortunately everything is possible because the annexation of Crimea and the eastern part of Ukraine… shows we can break the global security system.” He said the ongoing fighting against Russian-backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine should be seen as a fight for all of Europe. “Is an attack on Finland possible? Yes, and Finland knows that. Is an attack on the Baltic states possible? Yes.”

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Having realised these antics, which unfortunately played out in full scale with the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the larger percentage of the world powers have justifiably imposed a barrage of economic sanctions on Russia in order to isolate it from the rest of the world and limit its currency and economic strength. Sadly, Nigeria seems not to agree with the rest of the world. It is now more glaring than ever that life seems not to have any value in Nigeria, particularly as the news media is daily inundated with reports of killings, abductions, and other heinous crimes. Recently in Sokoto, there was the reported incident of the lynching and killing of a 200-level female Christian student of the ShehuShagari College of Education. In Anambra State, it was reported that a pregnant woman and her four children were killed in cold blood. Also, in Lekki, Lagos State, there was the reported incident of the lynching and burning of a sound engineer. Much remains to be seen about the outcome of police investigations on these reported cases, out of thousands of others.

Against the backdrop of the above, must the Nigerian government allow its docile outlook to unjustified killings become glaring on the world stage? Is it really in the interest of Nigeria to import Russian wheat and potash at the expense of the potential extension of economic sanctions from the West? Would such a move by the Nigerian government not likely portray Nigeria as pro-Russia or pro-war? In the wake of the war, the US commenced the imposition of severe economic sanctions on Russia and Belarus. As the months rolled by, other countries joined in the efforts to weaken Russia from continuing with the war, with new economic sanctions being more severe than the former. First, the US invoked sanctions which targeted Putin’s inner circle and their families, and important banks. Later, the European Union issued sanctions that blacklisted Russian politicians and officials, banned trading in Russian state bonds and target imports and exports with separatist entities. On its part, the UK sanctioned five Russian banks and also imposed sanctions on high net-worth individuals with known ties to Putin. Germany suspended the certification process for an all-important natural gas pipeline which directly links Russian gas to Europe via Germany. For Canada, the government announced that it would ban its citizens from all financial dealings with Russian and ban the purchase of Russian sovereign debt. The government of Australia, in a statement where it announced that “Australians always stand up to bullies”, added that it would join forces with the government of other nations to stand against Russia. The sanctions imposed by Japan include prohibiting issuance of Russian bonds in Japan and freezing the assets of certain Russian individuals.

One must, however, be quick to point out that the sanctions imposed by these nations have not come without a cost to many of the nations who imposed them. For instance, Germany is Russia’s biggest customer for natural gas, and the decision by the German Chancellor to halt the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, though yet to be operational, was widely seen as one of the strongest steps Europe could take. Worthy of note is the statement of the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, when he commented on the pipeline ban. He said: ‘True leadership means tough decisions in difficult times. Germany’s move proves just that’

The point here is however not about  the Nigerian government’s imposition of sanctions on Russia. The least that can be done by the Nigerian government is to avoid exposing Nigeria to any potential economic sanction, just like USA extended its sanction over Belarus ‘for supporting and facilitating Moscow’s attack’. Though the Nigeria’s Sovereign Investment Authority did not dispute that Canada can equally supply the required volume of required wheat and potash, its only concern is that supplies from Russia will reach the shores of Nigeria faster than from Canada. Though I do not see the rationale behind this opinion, the price of delayed shipping does not justify the risk and unreasonableness of Nigeria’s economic interrelations with Russia at this point in world history. It is not only ill-advised, but it is also unconscionable for Nigeria to engage in commercial relations with such a murderous nation.

AARE AFE BABALOLA, OFR, CON, SAN, LLD. D.Litt.