http://allafrica.com/stories/200706060709.html

Long seen as funding the continent's wars and doing little other than seeking out petroleum and mineral resources, Russia is now looking to kick-start better trade relations with Africa, and has made its first move by writing off the majority of the continent's debt.

"We are helping our African partners reduce the burden of foreign debt. We have written off African debt totaling 11.3 billion dollars, of which 2.2 billion dollars is in the framework of the initiative to reduce the indebtedness of the poorest nations," Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said at a May 25 gathering of a group of ambassadors, diplomats and ministry officials marking Africa Day.
Rest of the story at above link. While dry it's very telling of the direction of Russia's advance in the "New" Cold War. IMO