Nord Stream 2 is a pipeline that will deliver Russian gas to Western Europe – and, by extension, increase Putin’s influence across the continent. That makes Ukraine and some other countries nervous.
Angolan President Joao Lourenco and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Johannesburg in 2018.
EPA-EFE/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin Pool
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has new aspirations in Africa in pursuit of his country’s assertiveness in the global arena.
Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez was a major financier of Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega, seen here at a 2016 commemoration on the third anniversary of the socialist leader’s death.
Reuters/Marco Bello
Cheap Venezuelan oil boosted Nicaragua’s economy and funded President Daniel Ortega’s many anti-poverty programs. With Venezuela in crisis, the oil has dried up – as has support for Ortega’s regime.