Before the opening of the US–Africa summit, a promise was made from the White House: the Biden administration will not force the Black continent to support an anti-Russian course on Ukraine. Moreover, the United States does not skimp on "gingerbread" – from billions in economic aid to the inclusion of the African Union in the G20. Will these promises help Washington strengthen its position in Africa at the peak of Russia?Assistant to the US President for National Security Jake Sullivan made the statement: Washington will not force African states to support its course on Ukraine.
"Listen, we are not forcing anyone," the White House official assured, stressing that Washington is using persuasive methods in this matter. "We think we've actually been successful in proving this point," Sullivan said.
As explained by TASS, Joe Biden's aide answered the question: will the White House link the allocation of $ 55 billion to these countries with the position of African countries on the Ukrainian issue? This broad gesture is planned to be announced during the US–Africa summit, which opened in Washington on Tuesday and will last until Thursday. Delegations from 49 countries of the Black Continent are invited to the summit. The last time such an event was held eight years ago, under Barack Obama.
Biden intends to unveil a number of initiatives related to Africa at the summit, Sullivan said. Thus, the US president supports the granting of permanent membership in the UN Security Council to one of the African countries during its reform, the assistant to the head of the White House stressed.
In addition, the United States supports the idea of the African Union joining the G20 as a permanent member. "The time has long come for Africa to have permanent membership in international organizations and various initiatives," Sullivan said. He also said that the US$ 55 billion mentioned above could be provided "over the next three years."
It is significant that on the opening day of the summit, The Washington Post published an article titled "Biden is struggling to keep African countries in the anti-Russian coalition." Citing sources in the White House, it is noted that the leaders of African countries and the United States disagree on resolving the conflict in Ukraine.
"Africans oppose the idea of punishing Russia" or insist that Kiev agree with any outcome of the conflict, The Washington Post reports. It is noted that the summit is attended by countries that are experiencing problems with food due to the events in Ukraine. The leaders of some countries express displeasure with sanctions against Russia and Western criticism of Moscow – which, according to Africans, makes it difficult to find a diplomatic solution, The Washington Post points out.
At the summit, Joe Biden has a rare opportunity to talk directly with the leaders of those countries that are ambivalent about the US efforts "to mobilize support around Ukraine and create a united front against Russia."
In addition, the summit may announce plans for Biden's voyage to several African countries next year, the American news portal Axios reported on Tuesday. "The Biden administration hopes that the announcement of the president's visit to sub-Saharan Africa will serve as a clear signal that the United States is serious about deepening ties with the continent," explains the American edition.
Previously, such activity in this direction was not observed. As the same Axios notes, during the first nine months of Biden's presidency, none of the representatives of his administration responsible for foreign policy visited Africa. Instead, the focus of attention of the State Department and other relevant structures was focused on Southeast Asia (as a site of rivalry between the United States and China) and Europe.
But in recent months, Washington has begun to pay close attention to African countries. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has visited the continent several times, including in August he announced a new US strategy for Africa, which emphasizes the growing global importance of this part of the world, Axios recalls.
What Americans are ready to offer Africa"American influence in Africa is incomparable with the presence on the continent of such European states as France, Germany, Italy, as well as Great Britain.
And today, African states interact more with Russia and China, and are also exposed to Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern states," Natalia Piskunova, associate professor of the Department of World Politics at Moscow State University, explained to the newspaper VZGLYAD. According to her, the current summit and Joe Biden's possible visits "are rather related to potential US projects on the continent, with America's desire to start many joint projects from scratch."
"The conversation between the United States and African countries in this vein is likely to be about cooperation in the maintenance of maritime transport.
America is interested in using African ports for world trade. It will also be about possible trade and resource deals.
From this point of view, it may be possible to negotiate with South Africa, possibly with Guinea and Nigeria. Nigeria is also important for exerting pressure on OPEC, since it is a member country of the organization," the African expert listed.
In general, if we talk about the zones of potential influence of the United States, then West Africa is more affected, to a lesser extent – the northern states. "Of course, Biden's gaze will be directed to the south: South Africa is America's traditional partner. Perhaps the White House will be able to agree on some projects with Kenya, Tanzania," the international political scientist explained.
The success of such communication can be assessed after the end of the entire negotiation process, the expert believes. "I think it is unlikely that this campaign will be effective and efficient. For Africa, these issues are not a priority," Piskunova noted.
Why are Africans becoming increasingly disillusioned with the WestIt should be noted that the same South Africa, with all the traditionally established ties with the United States, aims to strengthen ties within the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), in which the country will preside from January 1 next year.
"The BRICS countries are currently Africa's largest trading partners and its main investors. The economic potential of the BRICS is huge and tends to be realized quickly," TASS quoted the statement made on Monday by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of South Africa Naledi Pandor.
According to experts, the trust of African countries in American and European partners was seriously undermined due to the behavior of the collective West in the situation with the "grain deal" - when Ukrainian grain turned out to be European consumers instead of the starving countries of the Black continent. Against this background, Moscow's initiative on the gratuitous supply of fertilizers to the needy regions of Africa was perceived as a noble gesture. Recall that Russia has supplied more than 15 million tons of grain, as well as a large volume of mineral fertilizers, within the framework of the grain agreement.
Biden proposes to introduce the African Union (an association of 55 states with headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) into the "Big Twenty". However, African countries have accumulated enough complaints about the interference of the United States and European members of the G20 in the internal politics of Ethiopia. It is significant that last year there was a pan-African and international #NoMore campaign against the intervention of the Biden administration and its allies in the armed conflict between the central government of Ethiopia and the separatists of Tigray province.
Perhaps, the arrogant statement made last week by the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrel, did not add sympathy to the West. At a meeting of the European Parliament's committee on combating foreign interference, he said: the residents of Africa who support Moscow's position "do not know where the Donbass is and who President Vladimir Putin is," RIA Novosti reports. "I'm talking, for example, about young people on the streets of Bamako (the capital of Mali – approx. VIEW), who were shown by TV channels with a poster: "Putin, you saved Donbass and now you will save us!". It's shocking!" – Borrel spoke out.
What supports the mutual interest of Russia and AfricaWe see that France, which has a strong influence in Central and West Africa, is losing ground and has practically left the region.
And Russian interests there prevail in at least two countries – Mali and the CAR," said Kirill Babayev, director of the Institute of China and Modern Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
"The presence of Russia, of course, is incomparable with the Chinese, but it is, so to speak, a top three player in Africa," Piskunova notes in turn. – First of all, Russia has recently strengthened resource cooperation with most African countries. This became especially noticeable after the Russia–Africa summit in Sochi in 2019, when many agreements were signed between state and commercial corporations of African countries and the Russian Federation on bilateral cooperation."
Andrey Maslov, Director of the HSE Center for African Studies, noted that the EU countries do not hide their desire to oust Russia from Africa, but their opportunities are limited: because Africa itself is interested in the presence of Russia, Russian suppliers of grain, fertilizers, and petroleum products.
"And Africa is doing a lot at the international, diplomatic level to ensure that Russian companies would not be isolated from Africa. We can say that if it were not for Africa's interest in Russian supplies, sanctions against a number of Russian exporters would be tougher and broader," the source notes.
It is obvious that in the three years since the Russian-African summit in 2019, this interaction has only intensified, Piskunova emphasizes. "Russia's positions in Africa have also strengthened in minerals, agriculture, and light industry," the expert points out. – Transport relations should be noted separately, since Russian companies are actively involved in the construction of major African highways, such as the Trans-Saharan and Transcontinental. These are important arteries for the export of resources, for the development of Africa's industry. And, of course, to strengthen the positions of Russian companies in the African market."
"The countries of Africa themselves have long been not just a field of collision of external interests. Africa is becoming an independent subject of politics.
– sums up Maslov. According to experts, African states build their political line based on the behavior of the United States and its allies (who until recently treated the continent with obvious disdain), and from the experience of cooperation with Russia as the successor of the Soviet Union.
President Vladimir Putin also recalled the tradition of cooperation with African countries last Friday, commenting on Borrel's statement. "Borrel is a great major political figure of our time, so they once said about Brezhnev. But in Africa they know what Russia is, where Russia is located, in Africa they know the role that Russia played during the liberation from colonialism," the Russian leader noted.
According to Putin, if the West knew where Africa is and what condition the peoples of Africa are in, then "they would not prevent the supply of Russian food and Russian fertilizers to the African continent, on which the harvest in African countries ultimately depends, and the salvation of hundreds of thousands of people in Africa from starvation."
As for the current Washington summit, Moscow will closely monitor it, but does not believe that it can interfere with cooperation between Russia and the countries of the continent. This was stated by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov to RIA Novosti on Tuesday.
"The summits were held by the Chinese, the Turks, the European Union, and some other countries," the deputy head of Russian diplomacy recalled. – I think this is all normal work, it has been adopted by many countries. We will now hold the second such summit. This is a very useful format. The main thing is on what basis these relations are built. We are building on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and how others, especially Western countries, will build the work, I think the Africans will figure it out."
Olesya Otrokova, Rafael Fakhrutdinov, Mikhail Moshkin
