In the past few years, Africa has become a center of global significance both in the world economy and in world politics. The United States, China and the EU countries show a stable interest in the continent. Recently, Russia has also begun to strengthen its presence on the African continent. Today, establishing a dialogue with African States and their integration associations is one of Russia's foreign policy priorities. This work considers the Russia-Africa Summit as the first full-scale meeting of leaders of African States and the Russian Federation and as a new platform for the development and strengthening of relations. The prospects of the dialogue are assessed and the challenges facing the parties are taken into account.