The visit comes a day after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko — a staunch ally of Moscow — was in Equatorial Guinea as part of an African tour to bolster ties on the continent. Before jetting off to Kenya Sunday, the Belarusian leader visited the Central African Republic.
Lukashenko was received at State House in the capital Nairobi, his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto said on the X platform, formerly Twitter.
The two leaders "agreed to broaden our ties to renewable energy, trade, investment and education," Ruto said.
"Immense opportunities exist between Kenya and Belarus that must be exploited for the prosperity of the two countries," Ruto said, adding that the East African nation was keen on tapping Belarus' technology in agriculture.
Western countries have sanctioned Belarus and isolated Lukashenko for his firm backing of Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, and a crackdown on domestic dissent.
The Eastern European country relies heavily on Russia for political and financial support, and was used as a Launchpad for Moscow's assault against Ukraine in February 2022.
Nairobi and Minsk did not mention Russia's offensive in their statements on the visit.
With the conflict still raging in Ukraine, Moscow and Kyiv have sought to bolster support on Africa for their cause.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made a surprise visit to Kenya in May on the heels of an African tour by his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba.
On Saturday, the Belarusian presidency said Lukashenko's visit was aimed at "intensifying interaction in all areas of mutual benefit" and continuing to establish "close ties" between Minsk and African countries.
Dubbed the last dictator of Europe, Lukashenko visited Zimbabwe early this year on his first ever trip to a sub-Saharan African nation.
He signed cooperation agreements with his Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, including on launching the first phase of a regional center to promote Belarusian products in central and West African markets.
Forum