It should be immediately noted that the message was drafted by three French senators – Deputy Speaker of the French Senate for Foreign Relations Roger Carucci, head of the political group “The Republicans” Bruno Retailleau and Chairman of the Senate Commission on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Armed Forces Christian Cambon, but it was signed by 94 senators.
If in brief, the cross-cutting theme in the letter is the idea that one after another failure of Paris in military, political and cultural cooperation with Africa has led not only to the rise of anti-French sentiment on the continent but also to the growing influence of Russia, China and the United States.
“Today Niger, yesterday Mali, Central African Republic [CAR] and Burkina Faso rejected France, French troops and French companies. After the failure of Operation Barkhan, the Wagner paramilitaries are coming in at our expense, ready to work with leaders who are building power by rallying their populations against the former colonial power.
This movement in sub-Saharan Africa is growing, with demonstrations and anti-French actions taking place even in countries as seemingly close to us as Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal,” the lawmakers wrote, emphasising the uncertainty in Paris’ relations with North Africa, namely Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia.
According to the senators, in recent years, members of the French government have not made efforts in this direction, but only “masked failures”, blaming all those who disagree with the nostalgia for the policy of “French Africa”, which implied informal tutelage over the former colonies. In this regard, the letter emphasises that “today, yesterday’s French Africa is turning into a militarily Russian Africa, economically a Chinese Africa and diplomatically an American Africa.”
It is noteworthy that the authors of the letter did not miss the fact that the growing popularity of the English language on the African Continent leads to a gradual decline in the importance of French there.
“Africa, a friendly continent, seems to have ceased to understand France and is increasingly challenging its role and presence,” the senators tragically stated, calling on President Macron to take a clear position on this issue. Obviously, the Senate has accumulated a lot of complaints against the leadership of their country. But are they justified, or is this just a routine criticism of the supreme power by the parliament?
First of all, we must recognise that the fears of senators about the gradual disappearance of “French Africa” and its replacement by “Russian” and “Chinese” Africa are by no means groundless. The fact that African countries are abandoning all ties with France in favour of Russia and China is obvious. The rapidly growing influence of the United States on the continent is not an insider either. Here are just a few facts to prove that this process is gaining momentum.
However paradoxical it may sound, especially against the background of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, one of the main ideological messages that Moscow promotes on the African continent is the joint struggle against neocolonialism, which a priori cannot fail to please African states, for which this slogan has become almost a state strategy.
Suffice it to recall Vladimir Putin’s speech (March 20, 2023) at an international parliamentary conference, where he stated that “Russia and African countries are opposed to neo-colonial ideology imposed from outside.”
It is this thesis that Moscow is trying to fix in the minds of not only formal and informal African leaders, but also the public of the countries of the continent. Albeit at a declarative level. Although it is clear that, according to the logic of Moscow, it was the West that turned Ukraine into its colony, the consequences of which are now being raked by Russia. But that is off-topic.
The bottom line is that, like Russia, China is promoting similar anti-colonial rhetoric. For example, the PRC Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) broadcasts the thesis that China, like Africa, “was a victim of imperialism and neo-colonialism” and that today they can “together protect their rights and fight against political demonisation and external interference”.
There is no doubt, however, that when building relations with Africa, the economic factor is of decisive importance for both China and Russia and that the strengthening Beijing-Moscow tandem in the African direction is aimed not only against France, which is being driven out but also against the growing influence of the United States.
That is, even though China has invested significant funds in Africa (in infrastructure, resource development, etc.), as well as due to the presence of PMC “Wagner”, Russia’s military influence has increased here, there is also an increase in the influence of the United States on the continent. This, in particular, is indicated by the March tour of American Vice President Kamala Harris to African countries.
Recall that upon arrival in Ghana, the first destination of her visit, which also includes Tanzania and Zambia, Harris immediately stated that “the United States will increase investment in Africa to stimulate economic growth on the continent.” And in December, ahead of the US-Africa summit, Washington pledged $55 billion to African countries over the next three years.
In the same month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced $150 million in new humanitarian aid for the Sahel region, which is suffering from persistent drought. In short, all these facts and many others show that the African continent is turning into another apple of discord for the world powers.
China, the US and Russia have entered the struggle to strengthen and expand their positions there, which is a serious trigger for the complete ousting of France. Its African neo-colonial policy is no longer effective, and all former French colonies are getting rid of it one after another, which is a serious concern for representatives of the political elite in Paris.
It is worth paying attention to another important nuance. In the open letter, the authors of the appeal to Macron propose to revise the French vision of Africa and its ties with Paris, noting that “they have not come to terms with the gradual disappearance of France from the entire African continent”. But this “unwillingness to come to terms” is in one way or another indicative of the colonialist mindset of the French senators themselves.
And to be fair, it is these Macron’s accusers for the loss of Africa who should be harshly criticised for being colonialists themselves in the first place. Before making any demands on the government, each of them should apologise to the African Continent for their own neo-colonial thinking and then make claims against the government. This approach applies to the entire French political system, including the government and the opposition, which to this day are based on the principles of neo-colonialism that African states are trying to get rid of.
As for the French government, the head of the Fifth Republic has not yet provided an official response to the senators’ letter, although it is known that the country’s Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that “Operation Barkhan was not a failure and that it would be a mistake to think so”.
In August 2014, France launched an operation known as “Barkhan” to combat Islamist militants in Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and Chad. It was a continuation of Operation Serval, which was conducted in Mali from 2013 to 2014.
The government of Mali, where most of the French contingent was stationed, later urged the withdrawal of the French contingent from the African country, a demand that was honoured.
As a result, the vast majority of French troops were redeployed from Malian territory to neighbouring Niger, where a military coup took place on July 26 of 2023, demanding that French troops also be withdrawn from the country soon.
But earlier, in March 2023, Macron, during his tour to several countries of the continent, declared that the times of French intervention in African affairs are over, even promising that “the era of Franco-Africa is long over” and now France will be “a neutral interlocutor who will not interfere in the internal politics of the countries of the continent”.
However, judging by the recent events in Niger, Macron failed to convince ordinary Africans of the seriousness of his intentions. To put things in their proper names, it is doubtful that official Paris really wants to end the traditional neocolonial system – in fact, Macron and his government would like to restore France’s lost influence on the African Continent.
But to the displeasure of the French president and senators, geopolitical processes in the world, as well as the internal political crisis in France itself, clearly indicate that the Fifth Republic has virtually no serious reserves left to preserve its colonial system.
Matanat Nasibova
Caliber.Az
