Alemayehu Tegenu, Ethiopia’s ambassador to Russia, has revealed that people in his country like Russia and respect Russian President Vladimir Putin.
As Tegenu explained to RIA Novosti, this attitude stems from the fact that Russia helped Ethiopia in the past.
"If you were to tell them ‘I’m from Russia’, Ethiopians would have a positive attitude towards you," he said. "They [Ethiopians] sometimes carry Putin’s photos with them."
Tenegu pointed out that tens of thousands of Ethiopians, including himself, graduated from Soviet universities, and that students from Ethiopia study in Russian universities today.
He also remarked that Ethiopia has a large Orthodox Christian community, while the ancestors of famous 19th century Russian poet Alexander Pushkin hailed from the African country.