Russia Enjoys Fairly Strong Public Support in UNSC African Countries

On March 2nd, the three African countries currently sitting on the United Nations Security Council – Gabon, Ghana, and Kenya – all openly condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Based on a snapshot of data from Twitter, the public sentiment in these three countries largely reflects their governments’ criticism of Russian aggression in Ukraine.

However, the data collected from Gabon and Kenya revealed substantial support for Putin and Russian actions in Ukraine – slightly more than 25 percent in both countries. Strong criticism of NATO and the United States was the driving force behind the support for Russia. Specifically, users were critical of NATO’s and the United States’ involvement in Africa and the Middle East, as well as the American narrative around Russian aggression. Both critiques framed Putin as the lesser of two evils and, in some cases, promoted Russian-African partnerships.

Scope & Methodology: VoxCroft performed a snapshot collection of tweets containing the word “Russia” in English and vernacular by users who self-reported to be located in Gabon, Ghana, and Kenya. Of the 6,400 tweets collected, a random representative sample was hand-coded by subject matter experts for sentiment and theme.

Originally published in the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) Africa Program monthly newsletter, as part of our exclusive partnership.