Visa Agreement With Russia

Maputo — The Mozambican and Russian governments signed an agreement in Maputo on Wednesday, abolishing entry visas - but only for holders of diplomatic and service passports.

The agreement was signed by Mozambican Foreign Minister Oldemiro Baloi and Russian ambassador Igor Popov.

Addressing the ceremony, Baloi said the agreement would facilitate the circulation of people between the two countries, and speed up official business. He hoped that in future the agreement could be extended to the holders of other types of passports.

In the days of the Soviet Union, there was very substantial military and economic cooperation between Mozambique and the USSR. But with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the level of cooperation plummeted.

Baloi said that in 2008 Mozambique sent a delegation to Russia to revive bilateral cooperation. He thought the visa exemption agreement was a useful step in this direction.

Currently the Russian embassy is aware of 240 Russian citizens working in Mozambique. There are about 100 Mozambicans living in Russia.

Source: Allafrica (2009.12.30)