The article examines the potential of the Russian language and cooperation in education as a source of Russian “soft power” in Nigeria. Today, Africa is becoming an increasingly relevant regional area of foreign policy of the Russian Federation. The spread of Russian “soft power” in Nigeria, one of the key states in sub-Saharan Africa, will promote national interests throughout the continent. Cooperation in education has proved to be a more influential source of soft power, while a number of difficulties accompanies the popularization of the Russian language in Nigeria. Russia’s lack of a strategy to form elites in Nigeria slows down the possibility of intensifying cooperation with this African state.
