On Wednesday, April 10, the new Embassy of Ukraine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo officially began its operations. The establishment of the embassy was carried out on the instructions of President Volodymyr Zelensky.

This was reported by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, on Instagram.

"Ukraine continues to expand its diplomatic presence, particularly in the African continent. Step by step, we are opening new horizons and officially opening the embassies established last year in Africa, on the instructions of President Volodymyr Zelensky," wrote the official.

Kuleba added that the Embassy of Ukraine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo officially started its work on April 10. The minister noted that the Democratic Republic of the Congo is called the "heart of Africa." It is the second-largest country in Africa and the eleventh-largest in the world by area.

According to him, Ukraine and the DRC have cooperated well in the field of education. In 2021-2022, 419 students from the DRC studied in our country.

Ukraine and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) established diplomatic relations in 1999. However, in recent years, this cooperation has intensified. In August 2022, President Zelensky held telephone negotiations with DRC leader Felix Tshisekedi.

The DRC was one of the few sub-Saharan African countries to vote "for" the UN General Assembly resolution "Territorial Integrity of Ukraine" in March 2014. It also voted positively on four out of six Ukrainian resolutions in the UN General Assembly after the start of Russia's full-scale aggression.

The Embassy of Ukraine is located in the diplomatic quarter of the Congolese capital. Its work will contribute to the activation of cooperation with Congolese partners, particularly in the areas of trade, agriculture, industry, energy, education, and information technology.