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US to boost the military attention it pays Africa
Fewer wars and cases of genocide
02/2007
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[ Combating terrorism ]
US to boost the military attention
it pays Africa
The US administration is planning to set up a military command centre for the African continent. According to media reports, only some details are yet to be decided, including the location of the new centre, its composition and the necessary reorganisation of the Pentagon’s other regional commands, which have, so far, handled Africa. Stars and Stripes, a US Army newspaper, reported that US President George W. Bush already approved of the plan. As D+C went to press, other papers reported he would soon officially announce the establishment of Africa Command.
Up until now, three of the USA’s five regional Unified Combatant Commands have been jointly responsible for Africa, with
– European Command in charge of parts of the continent’s north, west, centre and south,
– Central Command in charge of Egypt, Sudan, the Horn of Africa and Kenya, and
– Pacific Command in charge of island states in the Indian Ocean.
American Africa experts within and outside of the Defence Department have long been advocating merging all military attention to Africa under a single roof. Doing so is said to be essential for coherent security policy.
Africa’s relevance has increased significantly for the USA in recent years. On the one hand, the continent supplies commodities, on the other, it is a hot spot in the fight against terrorism. “The Sahara is not a wall; jihadists will travel across it and spread their ideology,” says Chester Crocker, professor of strategic studies at Georgetown University. He appreciates the planned “unity of focus throughout Africa”. The Boston Globe, a daily paper, quotes a Pentagon spokesman as saying that “the goal is to prevent another Afghanistan”. Furthermore, the US administration wants to counterbalance China’s fast growing influence in Africa.
General William E. “Kip” Ward, currently deputy commander at European Command, is being considered to head Africa Command. Ward has African experience, he was in command of the US troops in Somalia in 1993, and served as military representative in Egypt. According to Aviation Week magazine, General Ward said in January that Africa not only requires a military mindset, but rather a holistic understanding of security. In line with this remark, the US administration is considering not only assigning army staff to Africa Command, but also diplomats from the State Department.
The Combined Joint Task Force in Djibouti provides a model of what the US administration considers a successful military mission in Africa with civilian components. The 1800-man unit on the Horn of Africa is meant to stop the spread of extremist activities. In this context, it cooperates closely with the US embassies and civilian institutions of the affected countries. The duties of the Task Force also include aid projects. (ell)
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