The Zimbabwean government has received 18 helicopters from Russia to be used in medical, air policing and search and rescue operations in the country.
The helicopters were handed over by a Russia delegation at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in Harare on Thursday.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the helicopters were purchased after his personal appeal for support from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, Mnangagwa said: “We appealed to access and purchase this equipment and we were accepted.”
The Zimbabwean government didn’t give further details of how much it paid for the helicopters.
It said the acquisition is part of Zimbabwe’s private-public partnership arrangement with Russia.
In September, Russia donated an ambulance helicopter to Zimbabwe.
The aircraft come at a time when Russia is seen to be having growing influence in Africa and making inroads in some countries despite most of the world shunning it for its invasion of Ukraine.
Zimbabwe has been strengthening its relations with the country. It was among the 24 countries that voted against a UN General Assembly resolution to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council.
In March Zimbabwe hosted a high-level Russian delegation that included minister of foreign affairs and economic relations Yarin Vyacheslav. According to Zimbabwe's foreign affairs ministry, the visit was necessitated by the two countries’ “existing excellent political relations”.
Zimbabwe is among the African countries that will attend the Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg in June.
Russia will also host the maiden Zimbabwe Russia Business Forum in Moscow during the same month.
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