The summit, hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin and scheduled for October 28–29, 2026, brings together more than 30 African heads of state and government.
President Mahama’s attendance follows months of confirmation from Ghanaian and Russian officials, with the President himself signalling in London last week that the trip would carry a specific message for President Putin.
Ghana’s Ambassador to Russia, Dr Koma Steem Jehu-Appiah, led embassy staff from Moscow to receive the President. Russian government officials were also at the airport to welcome him.
Speaking at the Financial Times Africa Summit on October 21, President Mahama said he would use the Moscow visit to press for a ceasefire in the four-year-old Russia–Ukraine war.
“I’m going to Russia for the Russia–Africa Summit and try to convince President Putin to have a ceasefire if I can,” he said.
The President framed the appeal within Ghana’s long-standing non-aligned foreign policy, describing the country as “friends to all and enemies to none.”
He argued that Accra maintains cordial relations with the United States, the European Union, China and Russia, and that the balanced posture gives it room to engage Moscow on peace without being seen as taking sides.
President Mahama is also expected to hold a high-level bilateral meeting with President Putin on the summit’s margins, a prospect confirmed earlier by Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
The Foreign Minister said the President views the summit as “very important” and hopes the meeting will “further deepen our relations.”
During the visit, President Mahama and other heads of state will participate in an Economic and Humanitarian Forum and attend the plenary sessions of the summit. He will also visit a kente exhibition by the Russia–Ghana Parliamentary Forum.
Two universities, the Russian University of Transport and the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, will confer and decorate President Mahama with honorary doctorate degrees at separate ceremonies during his visit to Moscow.
The President will also grant an audience to a number of Russian businesses and state institutions.
Beyond Ukraine, President Mahama has signalled openness to broader security engagement with Russia in the Sahel, telling the London forum that “anybody who is committed to the fight against terrorism is welcome.”
