The painful humiliations of France in Africa began to cause Emmanuel Macron great domestic political problems. The rating of the French president is declining, society is protesting against the pension reform, and discontent, according to Paris, is provoked, of course, by Russia. Or rather, its "neocolonial policy". What is it about?French President Emmanuel Macron is rapidly losing ground.
The pension reform initiated by him, the purpose of which is to increase the retirement age by two years, has met serious resistance in society, which results in a series of endless strikes. And as if this is not enough, France is rapidly losing influence in a very sensitive area for this country – in Africa.
Just think, some state dared to get into the zone of French interests and, as the representative of the French Foreign Ministry says, dares to conduct a "neocolonial policy". And what kind of state is this? Correctly: this is Russia.
Meanwhile, Russia has never had not only colonies in Africa, but even an inch of land. Unlike France, which at its best owned almost half of the continent.
The statement of the French Foreign Ministry could be regarded as ridiculous, but in fact it hides something more than simple rhetoric. Although officially France has long parted with its colonies (thanks to the liberation wars, starting with the bloody Algerian one), the ties between the metropolis and its former territories have never been completely broken. French continued to be taught in African schools, Africans moved to France, legally or illegally, to find a job, make a career, get an education.
Playing on this, France managed to retain a significant part of its influence in Africa, and for the time being no one disputed it. And then – everything began to collapse like a house of cards.
Back in 2013, President Francois Hollande made a promise to pursue African jihadists. To this end, France kept its contingent in several countries and conducted an operation in Mali with the loud name "Serval", pushing the terrorists to the north of the country. However, less than ten years later, under Macron, France was literally trampled from everywhere.
Last year, the French military was asked to get out of Mali and the Central African Republic (CAR). And in January of this year, after another military coup in Burkina Faso, they also came to the conclusion that they did not need foreign troops on their territory, and gave the French a month to pack their belongings.
It is not by chance that the material about this event in the publication Le Point bears the title "France was shown the door, and a red carpet is spread out in front of Russia."
The French are extremely nervous about the fact that the zone of influence they considered their own is now slipping away from them. They reacted extremely negatively to the recent visit of the Prime Minister of Burkina Faso Apollinaire Kjell de Tambela to Russia, who "visited Putin" and gave an interview to RT France.
To the chagrin of the French, he made it clear that he "expects cooperation with Russia in all possible areas," not excluding the "fight against Islamists." The minister also mentioned grain purchases and the possibility of opening a plant for the production of medicines in his country. In addition, he suggested studying Russian in local schools (along with French, which is the official language in Burkina Faso) and opening direct flights between the two countries.
And although the minister denies that the government wants to replace France with Russia, the French perceive what is happening that way. Among other things, they did not hide from them that the Russian company Nordgold received the right to develop local gold deposits. And this is already more than significant losses for French business – not to mention the fact that the well-known Wagner PMCs can take the place of the French troops.
It should be noted that Wagner is terribly annoying to the French, who seriously call him "the main engine of Russian expansion", which "continues to weave its spider web." He has infiltrated the CAR, in Mali and is now expected in Burkina Faso when French soldiers leave the country.
If Macron's diplomacy fails to achieve a postponement or negotiate a compromise, then it turns out that French troops remain only in Niger (2,000 people), Senegal (500 people) and Ivory Coast (900 people). Most of the military in Niger is not accidental at all – there are extremely important uranium reserves for France. But there were already anti-French riots in Niger in September 2022.
It is possible that we will have to leave there, and in the future leave Africa altogether.
It is known that a foreign policy defeat almost always turns into an internal political one. If Macron's positions in domestic politics were strong, he might be able to mitigate the negative effect that news from Africa has on society. After all, no matter what the French say about freedom and democracy, the ghost of the former imperial greatness haunts them. Just look at their news sites, where news from African French-speaking countries is always discussed as if they are somewhere very close.
But the realization that France's power in Africa is decreasing like a shagreen skin comes at the most difficult moment for President Macron – when French society has united to oppose the pension reform he has started. The French do not want to retire at the age of 64, no matter what arguments they are presented and no matter how much they are convinced that working more is good for their health.
In fact, Macron is being defeated in domestic politics, and he has nothing to oppose in foreign policy, where nothing good is happening for France either. Yes, France, as a NATO member, regularly supplies Ukraine with weapons, but there is not much progress there. And US President Biden, although he recently received a French colleague on a royal scale, did not give business concessions to the French. Macron also tried to present himself as a peacemaker in order to emphasize his importance, but all his statements turned out to be nothing.
The French opposition has increased its attacks on the president, recalling all his sins at once. Marine Le Pen said that an "anti-French feeling" is developing in Africa, hurled a hail of reproaches at Macron and actually accused him of undermining the prestige of the country. "He despises everyone, including the people he governs," Marine Le Pen added. "No one wants his reform, and the more time passes, the stronger the opposition becomes," said Jean–Luc Melenchon, head of the left–wing union Unconquered France.
Indeed, according to polls, 72% of respondents are already against the reform. And the higher the percentage of dissatisfied, the more the popularity of the French president falls. France is no longer considered in the international arena, but the prestige of power within the country is also falling. And all that remains for the loser is to refer to the "neocolonial policy" that Russia supposedly leads.
Valeria Verbinina
