Servant of the People in Kyiv

It was already past 11 a.m. when they left the Ministry of Foreign Trade building. Haniyev had not eaten anything in the morning and had drunk a lot of wine last night, so his stomach was already rumbling with hunger.

Because small vendors are allowed, Haniyev saw citizens selling bread and fruit at the intersection not long after he walked.

Haniyev had just walked to a stall to buy two loaves of bread when he heard a shout from a distance: "The Cheka is coming!"

Many vendors immediately picked up their things and ran away, even the old lady with poor mobility disappeared in a flash.

A group of Ministry of Internal Affairs police wearing wide-brimmed hats and holding batons rushed out from all directions. They stopped the vendors and beat them up with punches and kicks. Some of them even hit the vendors' thighs with their batons.

The streets were suddenly filled with wailing, and many pedestrians hid to the side in fear, and Haniyev also hid far away.

"What is this doing?"

Seeing many pedestrians around him cursing under their breath as they watched the scene of violence by the Ministry of Internal Affairs in front of them, Haniyev grabbed a young man and asked.

"These vendors don't want to pay, so the Cheka won't let them operate. If they catch them, they'll beat them up. What bastards!"

"What money?"

“Management fee.”

"Management fees are just a pretext for extortion."

"Yes, they are all a bunch of bastards who only know how to bully ordinary people."

Looking at the indignant citizens on the streets of Moscow, Haniyev sighed in his heart, shook his head, covered his rumbling stomach, and squeezed out of the crowd.

I didn't go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the whole morning. Even if there was nothing to do in the African Department, the leaders would not make trouble. But Haniyev was a man who cared about his reputation, so he couldn't delay any longer. He had to go to work, right?

Author's words: I will update normally in the future, with at least two chapters a day, and as many as three or four chapters, totaling between four thousand and eight thousand words. Please support me!

Chapter 122 Visit

In a blink of an eye, it was September 26th, and Haniyev had been in Moscow for more than half a month.

Reuters' exclusive interview with Haniyev was reported ten days ago, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the foreign affairs agency, was the first to see it eleven days ago. Because Haniyev's remarks were appropriate, he received high praise from Foreign Minister Comrade Shevardnadze.

Therefore, although Haniyev has been in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for only ten days, he already possesses several characteristics such as "appropriate words", "high political awareness", and "the demeanor of a great power", which makes him, who is already quite famous, more able to gain a foothold in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Although Minister Shevardnadze said that he did not approve of Haniyev helping Burkina Faso and Sankara, after all, for the sake of Sherbitsky's face, the two of them had some friendship. After Haniyev agreed with Potanin to invest in the gold mine in Burkina Faso, he took the lead in reporting to the minister.

Shevardnadze did not comment on this, but asked Haniyev to wait and start negotiations with Burkina Faso after receiving an accurate response from Potanin.

Haniyev did not tell the minister that he had already informed the ambassador of Burkina Faso in advance, and on September 19, Ambassador Coulibaly had informed Haniyev that President Sankara was very interested in the Soviet Union's proposal to invest in the gold mine, but was not very satisfied with Haniyev's 50-50 split plan.

Potanin had not yet responded, so Haniyev did not dare to say much, but only asked the ambassador to continue working on Sankara's case.

After waiting anxiously for more than a week, when Haniyev was about to call Potanin, he finally received a call from Potanin's office.

"Secretary Haniyev, I've already contacted Rilsk Nickel. We're planning to set up a company and find a private sector representative. You, I, and the other shareholders will be behind it. We'll have this company absorb private capital, then lease Rilsk Nickel's tools and equipment and purchase more. I'll also send a letter to second a group of Rilsk Nickel engineers. This will save a lot of money, and it should be done in less than a month and a half. How are your talks with Burkina Faso going?"

"Director Potanin, you're truly capable of taking action. Don't worry, the Burkina Faso diplomats have all agreed. We're now awaiting their president's opinion. The main issue is that we're having trouble reaching an agreement on the shareholding split. I might have to go there in person and meet with them face to face."

Potanin chuckled. "That's fine. You're the initiator and a diplomat. At worst, you can go there in person. I don't think Sankara will give up this deal. At worst, we can give him a small stake..."

"Alright, I'll try communicating remotely first. If that doesn't work, I'll have to apply to go there."

"Okay, I'll wait for your call. We also need to carefully discuss the division of shares in this company and how much capital is needed to start the mine. Maybe we really need to go there. I can't help but see it in person..."

"Okay, I'll call the ambassador of Burkina Faso right away."

After hanging up the phone, Haniyev called the Burkina Faso Embassy and waited for a while before Ambassador Coulibaly answered the call.

"Mr. Ambassador, I've already spoken with the Rilsk Nickel Company. The Ministry of Foreign Trade is planning to spearhead the establishment of a large mining company, which will then undertake your country's gold mining project. This is a much higher standard than what we previously discussed. Once this project is completed, it will significantly contribute to your country's income, employment, and industrial technology. Do you understand the magnitude of this?"

"Thank you for your help, Mr. Haniyev. I've been speaking to the President every day lately, but he seems determined not to allow foreign capital to control even half of the mine's shares. He says that if he agrees, it would be treasonous, a loss of sovereignty, and a betrayal of the people and future generations. I think you'll need to personally discuss the ownership and specific operations of the gold mine with President Sankara."

After hearing Coulibaly's words, Haniyev said in a deep voice, "Okay, wait a moment. I will go and ask the minister to allow me to visit and negotiate with your country. I will inform you once I get authorization. Please inform President Sankara as soon as possible."

After hanging up the phone, Haniyev went straight to the minister's office, but Shevardnadze was not there. After asking, he found out that he had gone to the Kremlin for a meeting.

Haniyev waited until the next morning to meet with the minister. After he explained the details of the Burkina Faso gold mine, Shevardnadze snorted coldly, "You're quite courageous! No wonder you achieved such success in Ukraine. You've actually managed to pull it off quietly. You've only been in the Africa Department for less than twenty days, haven't you?"

Haniyev chuckled, "It's mainly because you, Minister, indulge me and favor me. Otherwise, how could I dare to act on my own?"

As he spoke, Haniyev picked up the coffee pot and added some hot coffee to Shevardnadze's cup, then smiled and said, "Anyway, what I've done doesn't violate the rules and regulations for Party members and cadres, nor does it violate national laws. On the contrary, it corresponds to the General Secretary's economic reform policy. If this is accomplished, it will be beneficial to the Soviet Union's economic reform cause and its international image. Moreover, the Foreign Trade Bureau is taking the lead in establishing a joint venture and is also attracting private capital. If you are interested, you can also invest a little. I have reserved a share for you. It doesn't require too much money. Once the gold mine is mined, you will have gold income every day... Your Excellency..."

Money has always been a source of inspiration. Haniyev's words seemed to have magical power, and Shevardnadze imagined a scene of gold falling. He swallowed his saliva and asked, "How can I invest in business?

We don't know the exact investment amount yet, nor how many shares Sankara would accept from us. Everything is still uncertain. You should go and negotiate first. Have the Ministry of Foreign Trade issue an official letter, and I can have the African Affairs Department send you to represent the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the negotiations. After all, this involves national wealth, and we can't be careless!"

Shevardnadze rejected Haniyev's proposal with a cold face, but Haniyev smiled.

He said that he would not invest, but the words he used were "our company". The minister really said one thing and did another!

Haniyev was secretly delighted and called Potanin as soon as he came out of the minister's office.

After hearing what Haniyev had said, Potanin chuckled. "It's just a written request. I've already had a foreign friend act as the company's legal representative. Our mining company is a legitimate Soviet-foreign joint venture, the first Soviet joint venture established by our Ministry of Foreign Trade in response to the General Secretary's call for investment. It shouldn't be difficult to have the Ministry of Foreign Trade write to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs requesting a joint trip to Burkina Faso for inspection and negotiations. I'll get it done now and have it for you this afternoon."

Such a big thing seemed to be downplayed and not worth mentioning in Potanin's mouth.

In fact, he does have the ability to make big things small and small things disappear, and to get things done by circumventing the rules. Potanin has been doing this for many years and has always been successful.

In a sense, Potanin is similar to Zhao Ruilong in "In the Name of People", combining power and convenience to the extreme, but Potanin's father is not as high-ranking as Zhao Ruilong, and Zhao Ruilong himself is not an official.

You have to know that Potanin has never failed in this trick. Even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Potanin served as the first deputy prime minister of Yeltsin's government, which was also a vice-state-level leader. So Mr. Zhao is far inferior to Mr. Bo.

It is precisely because Haniyev knows the status and achievements that Potanin can achieve in the future that he firmly believes that this matter can be accomplished if it is handed over to Potanin.

Potanin kept his word and personally delivered the official letter from the Ministry of Foreign Trade to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that afternoon.

At this time, the Foreign Minister had already embarked on a visit to the United States.

Because Gorbachev is expected to visit the United States on behalf of the Soviet head of state in December this year, which has been his dream since taking office and his first visit to the United States, the Foreign Minister must pave the way.

However, before leaving, Shevardnadze had informed the Deputy Minister and the African Department, so the official letter from the Ministry of Foreign Trade was quickly approved by the First Minister, and then the African Department also authorized Haniyev to go to Burkina Faso to negotiate on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Haniyev did not have a passport before, and it would take two months to apply for one. However, he was worried that if the time was too long, Sankara would be killed by Komboré before he could wait, so he kept urging Burkina Faso to set a date for the visit and negotiations.

Fortunately, Sankara was a decisive man, and Burkina Faso was eager for Soviet investment, so the negotiations were directly scheduled for early October.

Therefore, after Haniyev was authorized, there were only ten days left before his trip. This time was definitely not enough to apply for a passport according to the procedures. Not only Haniyev could not wait, but Potanin, who was in charge of this project in the Ministry of Foreign Trade, could not wait either. The engineers who went to Burkina Faso to explore gold mines and make budgets could not wait either.

At this time, the advantages of the Soviet system became apparent.

As an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Haniyev enjoys many privileges. He doesn't even have to apply for his passport in person. He just needs to take a photo and wait for three days to get his diplomatic passport.

On September 30, Potanin took a group of engineers who needed to go abroad to apply for passports. With the dual pressure of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Trade, they received their ordinary passports on the third day.

At this time, everything was ready, and Potanin directly chartered a special plane in the official name of the Ministry of Foreign Trade. Given the current conditions of the Ministry of Foreign Trade, it was no problem for him to bear the cost of one or two charter flights.

After two more days of preparation, on the morning of October 5, 1987, Haniyev, along with his two French-speaking clerks, Potanin, Good, the legal manager of the "First Mining" Company, and engineers from the Rilsk Nickel Mine Company, entered a huge passenger plane at Moscow Airport.

At this time, in addition to their large team consisting of four identities: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Trade, the joint venture, and the state-owned company, there was also a military attaché from the Embassy of Burkina Faso, who was returning home with the team as a guide and liaison.

Author's words: Today's 10,000-word update is completed!

Chapter 123 Compaore

Ouagadougou Airport is located in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. It is the only airport in Burkina Faso and was built with the help of France. Since there is no domestic airline, the airport has only served a few routes such as Paris, France, Algiers, Algeria and Cairo, Egypt since it was put into use in 1967, among which the Paris route is the most.

Because France is the suzerain of Burkina Faso, even after Burkina Faso became independent, France's influence remains. The country's elites always go to France for vacation, retirement, or even refuge, and their children are sent to study in France. Therefore, French and Burkina Faso's high-ranking officials and wealthy people will travel back and forth between the two countries.

There is no direct flight between Moscow and Ouagadougou, so Haniyev and his party flew to Paris first and then transferred from Paris to Ouagadougou, which took a total of 24 hours.

Even after deducting the time difference between the two countries, it was already eight o'clock in the morning on October 6 when Haniyev and his delegation arrived in Ouagadougou.

The plane that Haniyev and others took was naturally different from the economy class of low-cost airlines, but it would be uncomfortable to be unable to move for a long time on the plane, so after the cabin door opened, everyone hurriedly prepared to get out.

Although Burkina Faso was poor, it had a national television and radio station. Potanin was worried that a chaotic outburst would affect the Soviet Union's image, so he stood up and said, "Don't worry. Director Haniyev and I will leave first, and the others will follow."

Everyone had no choice but to stand aside and wait for the two Soviet officials leading the team, Haniyev and Potanin, to leave.

As he walked out of the cabin, Haniyev felt a wave of heat. He squinted his eyes before gradually adapting to the strong light outside.

At the bottom of the stairs were Soviet embassy officials and some reporters from Burkina Faso's national television station. The clicking sound of shutters and flashes made Haniyev feel as if he had become the leader of a great power.

After getting off the plane, Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister and the mayor of the capital, led by a tall and thin military officer, welcomed Haniyev and his delegation.

Officials from the Soviet Embassy in Burkina Faso introduced Haniyev and his delegation.

When they learned that the leading officer was Blaise Compaoré, the second-in-command of Burkina Faso, who holds many important positions including Minister of the Interior and Security, Commander of the Capital Military Region, and Minister of State and Justice.

Compaoré was Sankara's closest comrade-in-arms and trusted subordinate. He stood by Sankara since he established a Marxist group with himself as the core. Until he later launched a coup to seize power and govern the country, Compaoré was Sankara's right-hand man.

However, after Compaore married the granddaughter of the French Governor-General of Mali in 1986, he began to tend to cooperate with France, and his political ideas began to diverge from Sankara. However, the two generally maintained cooperation, but the power of pillow talk was indeed extraordinary. The rift in their relationship became increasingly larger, and open conflicts began to break out in 1987.

France, which hated Sankara to the core and wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible, quickly sent a new ambassador to France, Alan Deschamps, in August. He personally took charge of sowing discord between Compaoré and Sankara, striving to turn the internal strife into a conflict.

In August and mid-September, actions and rumors against Sankara continued to emerge, and rumors that the president wanted to deal with Compaoré intensified. The whole of Burkina Faso was already undercurrents.

At a time when the atmosphere was becoming increasingly depressing and the country was about to become a powder keg, the visit of the Soviet delegation led by Haniyev seemed to ease the atmosphere a little.

Since Sankara came to power, the relationship with France has been strained. Because the surrounding areas are all French minions, Burkina Faso has no friends in Africa except Gaddafi, who is also against France. If Burkina Faso wants to improve its poverty and backwardness, it cannot rely solely on self-reliance. Therefore, after stabilizing the situation, Sankara began to visit Khitan and the Soviet Union to seek aid and loans.

In 1984, Sankara visited Khitan and received aid and loans from Khitan. However, when he visited the Soviet Union in October 1986, he was coldly received by Gorbachev. He just took a tour of Moscow, the holy land of revolution, and returned home empty-handed.

International isolation made Sankara urgently need the support of the two big brothers, the Soviet Union and Khitan. The news that Haniyev led a team to Burkina Faso still became big news. Even though the Soviet Union sent only small leaders from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Trade, they were people from the revolutionary holy land who came to help them after all. Therefore, Haniyev received high-level courtesy that he should not have enjoyed at his level.

When shaking hands with Compaore and his delegation, Haniyev greeted them in the French he had just learned: "Bonjour!"

As a former French colony, Burkina Faso, like other West African countries, speaks French. After a few polite words, Haniyev and his entourage boarded the Mercedes-Benz prepared by the Burkina Faso side. Sitting in the car, Potanin curiously asked, "Why are we in Mercedes-Benz, while they all have Renaults?"

Mercedes-Benz is also a representative of luxury cars in this era, while Renault is a French brand, which is not as famous and high-end as Mercedes-Benz.

Haniyev glanced at the large Xiali-like Renaults outside the window and smiled slightly. "I heard that Sankara cut a lot of office expenses and unnecessary buses to save money for school construction and vaccinations. The remaining buses were replaced with Renaults. I guess if we hadn't come to visit, this Mercedes wouldn't have appeared."

"He truly has the demeanor of a proletarian revolutionary. I haven't seen anyone like him in the Soviet Union."

Potanin smiled contemptuously. It was obvious that he regarded Sankara as a person seeking fame and reputation, or in other words, in Potanin's world, he simply did not believe that there was anyone today who could be as selflessly dedicated to the revolution as Lenin and Guevara were in the past.

Haniyev said nothing and just looked at the scenery outside the car window quietly.

The road outside the airport is pretty good, but the green trees on both sides are very ordinary. If you look further away, there is nothing. There are weeds, shrubs, some trees and rocky beaches everywhere, and occasionally some dilapidated villages.

The scene in Burkina Faso's capital is far less impressive than in an average Soviet city.

It was not until the vehicle entered the city center that Haniyev and his party saw decent buildings and some French-style buildings.

“This is what a city looks like.”

Potanin grumbled, then said, "Before I came here, I heard that when French President François Mitterrand visited Burkina Faso, Sankara didn't give the former suzerain any face at all. Mitterrand was furious when he returned home. If we must teach Sankara a lesson, Mitterrand will be furious if we help Burkina Faso open a gold mine!"

Haniyev chuckled. "After the end of World War II, national consciousness awakened, and colonies around the world demanded independence. However, with Britain and France's strength, they were able to suppress most of their colonies. It was the Soviet Union and the United States that joined forces to dismantle the British and French colonial empires. Actually, the independence of these African countries is indebted to us."

"However, even after gaining independence, these small African countries were still unable to break free from the control of France and Britain. Take, for example, the West African countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Guinea, and Côte d'Ivoire. After independence, they continued to speak French and use the CFA franc. France controlled their countries' mineral resources, banks, and even their agricultural economies. If it weren't for Comrade Sankara in Burkina Faso, their gold mines would have long been in the hands of the French, even if we hadn't been able to mine them!"

"hey-hey……"

Potanin smiled and said, "If we mine the gold, the French will be furious."

While Haniyev and Potanin were chatting and laughing, the car drove into a large courtyard and stopped in front of a fountain. This was an exquisite French building, which should be the best hotel in Ouagadougou.

After Haniyev and his entourage got off the car, Compaore walked up to Haniyev and Potanin and said with a smile, "Please ask the two distinguished guests and the friends who came with the delegation to check into the hotel first. After you have rested for a while, our president will meet with you this afternoon."

After listening to the translation, Haniyev shook hands with Compaore and said goodbye, and then the group went into the hotel to wash up and rest.

Around 2:00 p.m., a permanent secretary from the Ministry of the Interior came to inform Haniyev and his delegation that President Sankara would meet them at the Presidential Palace two hours later, at 4:00 p.m.

Haniyev and others hurriedly ate something, then changed into appropriate suits and took a car from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to the Presidential Palace.

The car drove very smoothly in the city, and soon Haniyev found himself in a tree-lined garden. The soldiers guarding the gate were very energetic, quite like Soviet guards.

We arrived at the Presidential Palace.

The car passed a huge fountain and stopped in front of the palace gate. There was a red carpet underneath, and there were salutes and a guard of honor in the distance. Haniyev and Potanin looked at each other and saw surprise on each other's faces.

"Sankara received us as state guests!"

"Yeah, that's a big deal."

The door of the presidential palace was pushed open, Compaore walked out in a military uniform, and a soldier opened the car door.

Haniyev also learned some diplomatic etiquette in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Although it was his first time, he still bravely straightened his suit, got off the car and stood on the red carpet.

At this time, the camera of Burkina Faso's national television station was aimed at Haniyev. Haniyev held his head high and chest out, walked forward steadily, and came to Compaore.

Potanin followed Haniyev closely. After Compaore shook hands with the two men one by one, the three of them walked into the presidential palace.

The salute outside the door did not fire from beginning to end, and it was obviously just for decoration.

According to international etiquette, only big figures at the level of heads of state can enjoy the salute. Haniyev's level is far from enough. The fact that Sankara was taken out for decoration and the second-in-command of the country went out to greet him was already a high-level reception.