The Russian embassy in Ghana has said that Western sanctions are limiting Moscow's ability to deliver projects and conduct trade with Ghana, arguing that restrictions on financing, payments and logistics are increasingly affecting African businesses dealing with Russian entities.

The comments came in response to criticism from EU Ambassador to Ghana Rune Skinnebach over delays to Russia-linked projects, including a proposed Rosatom nuclear project, a Russia Export Centre facility and railway links between Accra and Paga.

The embassy said the delays should be viewed against restrictions imposed by the United States, the European Union and their allies, including measures targeting banks and companies outside Russia. Western powers have imposed sweeping sanctions on Russian banks, companies and individuals since 2022.

“Illegal unilateral restrictions imposed by the US, the EU and their allies – including secondary sanctions and threats against African banks, companies and individuals – are leading to the blocking of financing, logistics and payments,” the embassy said.

According to the embassy, Western banks are refusing to process transactions involving Russian entities, and African countries face the risk of being excluded from dollar-denominated settlements if they continue certain forms of cooperation with Russia. That, it argued, limits the practical ability of African governments and companies to pursue projects with Russian partners, even where there is political or commercial interest in doing so.

“The cause lies not with Russia, but in the stifling sanctions regime that the EU is imposing on legitimate cooperation between sovereign states. Sanctions are a tool of unfair competition and neo-colonial pressure, directed, among other things, against Africa. In effect, attempts are being made to deprive the continent of alternative paths to development,” the embassy stated.

Rosatom is Russia's atomic energy corporation, which has signed nuclear cooperation agreements with a number of African governments in recent years as part of Moscow's push to expand energy ties across the continent. The proposed railway would link Accra, Ghana's capital, with Paga, a border town in the country's north.

The dispute highlights one of the central limitations of Western sanctions: their impact can extend beyond Russian counterparties to banks, insurers, payment networks and companies in third countries that fear exposure to secondary sanctions or restrictions on access to Western financial infrastructure. The exchange also leaves Ghana's government positioned between criticism from the EU's envoy and rebuttals from Moscow's embassy over the same set of delayed projects.

Secondary sanctions are measures that threaten penalties against third-country banks, companies or individuals for transactions with sanctioned entities, extending the reach of restrictions well beyond Russia's borders. The US dollar dominates global trade finance, and most dollar transactions are processed through the US financial system.

For Ghana and other African economies, the issue is therefore not simply whether Russia remains willing to invest, but whether transactions involving Russian entities can be financed, insured, settled and supplied without exposing African counterparties to sanctions risk. The markers to watch are the named projects themselves, namely the proposed Rosatom nuclear project, the Russia Export Centre facility and the railway links between Accra and Paga, and whether financing, insurance and settlement channels remain available to them.

The Russian embassy said Russia-Ghana trade had increased in the first half of 2026, although it did not provide a figure. It reiterated its position that Moscow remains a reliable partner for Ghana, framing the relationship as one between equals.

“Russia has been, is, and will remain a reliable, predictable and equal partner to Ghana. We do not lecture or dictate terms. We offer Ghana, first and foremost, additional opportunities. And that is what really matters,” the statement read.

Source: BitcoinKE