Russia has hailed Felix Tshisekedi as the winner of a controversial presidential election in the Democratic Republic of Congo, despite evidence that suggests the result was fraudulent.
Congo’s constitutional court this weekend upheld the election’s announced results, dismissing claims by Martin Fayulu, an opposition candidate who had deemed the original result an “electoral coup”.
The ruling came after an analysis of leaked data by the Financial Times indicated Mr Fayulu had won with nearly 60 per cent of the vote, putting Mr Tshisekedi a distant second on 19 per cent.
“We consider the elections as a milestone in the political life of the DRC. This is the first in the history of the country the peaceful transfer of power as a result of the popular will,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
“We count on constructive co-operation with the new leadership of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the interests of strengthening traditional friendship and partnership between our countries, deepening Russian-Congolese co-operation in the political, trade-economic and humanitarian spheres,” it added.
Moscow has significantly deepened its diplomatic relations with African countries in recent years, as part of a foreign policy pivot away from western countries.
