Lavrov announced his willingness to expand the diplomatic presence of African countries in the Russian Federation Russia sees reciprocal steps by African countries to expand their diplomatic presence in Moscow and contributes to this, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said during a working breakfast with the heads of the foreign departments of African countries on Wednesday. "A reflection of the importance that Africa has for Russian foreign policy is the expansion of our diplomatic presence on the continent," Lavrov was quoted on the ministry's website.