AFRICOM plus US involvement in Africa 2018 onwards

[davidbfpo]

Moderator adds

Four posts on recent events in Somalia, in July 2018, which include references to US activity, have been moved to the main thread on Somalia (ends).


A critical overview by a veteran Reuters journalist, which seeks to answer:

an important question: At a time when U.S. military engagement in Africa is growing rapidly, who exactly is doing the mythmaking and the lying?

The U.S. military obscures the nature of its actions in Africa through ambiguous language and outright secrecy. It limits the amount of information available about the objectives of its operations, how those operations are carried out, the facilities it uses, and how it partners with governments in the region. At times, this has involved subverting democratic processes in partner countries, an approach that runs counter to years of diplomatic engagement ostensibly designed to strengthen governance institutions.

(Ends with)....this military-first focus comes at the expense of a more robust relationship with many African countries, one rooted in the democratic values Washington once claimed to prioritize across the continent. This means that while U.S. soldiers are becoming more vulnerable to attacks like the Niger ambush, their presence risks weakening the institutions of the states they’ve been sent to support.

Link:https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/24908/the-myths-and-lies-behind-the-u-s-military-s-growing-presence-in-africa