Zelensky also praised Tinubu, pledging that his war-torn country is determined to strengthen cooperation with Nigeria
By Kehinde Okeowo
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has invited Nigeria’s President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to his country on a state visit after his inauguration on May 29.
Zelensky also congratulated the former Lagos State governor on his victory at the February 25th presidential poll.
The congratulatory message is coming two months after the All Progressives Party (APC) presidential candidate was declared winner of the presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
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The Ukrainian leader went on to praise Tinubu and pledged that his war-torn country is determined to further strengthen cooperation with Nigeria.
His letter read: “Please accept my sincere congratulations on your election as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Despite extremely difficult testing times, caused by the full-scale armed aggression of Russia against our state, Ukraine is determined to further strengthen cooperation with Nigeria at the bilateral level and within the framework of international organizations.
“We are grateful for your country’s support of the Resolution of the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization “Principles of the UN Charter underlying a comprehensive, just and sustainable peace in Ukraine.
“I count on the active participation of Nigeria in its practical implementation. We see the further provision of global food security, of which Ukraine was and remains a reliable guarantor at the global level, as an important direction of cooperation.
“The fulfilment of this task will be facilitated by the successful implementation of the Ukrainian initiative “Grain from Ukraine”, which is designed to significantly increase the supply of grain to African countries in order to prevent famine.
“Taking this opportunity, I invite you to pay an official visit to Ukraine at a time convenient for you.
“I am confident that your visit will strengthen the dialogue between our countries and contribute to further consolidation of joint efforts of the international community aimed at solving the urgent challenges of today, in particular the crisis situation caused by Russia regarding the guarantee of world food security.”
Tinubu was declared Nigeria’s President-elect by INEC after polling 8,794,726 votes to defeat his closest challenger, the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Atiku Abubakar who garnered 6,984,520 and Labour Party’s flagbearer, Peter Obi, who scored 6,101,533 votes.