From the illusion of novelty to pragmatism resulting from a certain resignation. The French President, Emmanuel Macron, has explained this Monday afternoon his strategy for Africawhere France suffered notable setbacks both in the military and geopolitical field. A speech delivered from the Palace of the Elysiumtwo days before starting a diplomatic tour of four Central African countries: Gabon, Angola, Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The forced withdrawals of French troops in Mali and Burkina Faso dealt a severe blow to the centrist leader, who considers his country’s and the European Union’s ties to the African continent essential. Despite the growing presence of rival powers such as Russia or China, Macron has defended the need to continue with a progressive withdrawal of French soldiers from Africa and strengthen their ties through the economy and civil society (‘soft power‘).
The president claimed a recipe very similar to the one exposed in November 2017 in Ouagadougou. Then a newly elected 39-year-old centrist leader vowed to turn the page on the neocolonial policies of the ‘franceafrica‘. Five years later, he claims to defend the same path. A reasonable bet on a theoretical level, although weakened by France’s loss of influence and the few diplomatic successes since 2017. The African board reflects the competitive and chaotic nature of current world relations. Gallic influence is not only weighed down by the growing presence of rival powers, such as Russia or Chinabut also from allied theorists acting more and more on their own and with their own agenda, such as Turkey or Israel.
“I don’t think so” in military competition
“Many would like to take us to a competition (between powers). I don’t believe in this. This path represents an impasse & rdquor ;, Macron said in his speech, referring, without explicitly citing it, to the growing influence of Russia. Through its Wagner group of mercenaries, Moscow has replaced the French military presence in Mali and could do the same in Burkina Fasoin addition to having a prominent presence in the Central African Republic.
Although it is clear that Africa is a “land of competition”, as he acknowledged Macron, the centrist leader does not want to counter this growing Russian influence by locking himself into a policy of military deployment. In his speech at the Elysée, he announced a new “model of military association & rdquor ;. This will consist of maintaining the current French military bases, but with a “less presence& rdquor; of French soldiers and a greater responsibility of “our African partners & rdquor ;. France currently has deployed about 5,500 soldiers on African soil, 3,000 of them in Sahel countries such as Niger and Chad.
LIVE | The Afrique-France partnership: resume the press conference of the President @EmmanuelMacron. https://t.co/4GDMZzTIuO
— Élysée (@Elysee) February 27, 2023
“Today, too many of our companies continue not to offer their best quality products when they try to sell them to the African continent,” Macron lamented. He asked to go “from a logic of economic aid to investments & rdquor; in a continent that he described as “one of the most dynamic markets in the future & rdquor ;. In addition to the economic claimed to strengthen educational, sports, cultural ties —announced a new law that establishes a framework for the return of works of African art— or in the fight against climate change and in defense of the environment. All of this, said the president, he will try to reflect on this week’s African tour, which will begin with a summit against deforestation in Libreville.
Bet criticized by the realpolitik
Macron will begin this trip through four countries in Central Africa on Wednesday. None of them are part of the unstable Sahel region, where France was forced to withdraw its troops (in Mali and Burkina Faso) and there is a strong anti-French sentiment, which spreads in the rest of the continent. Gabon, Angola, Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo represent “stable countries”, they stand out from the Elysee. The other side of the coin of this stability is its caudillesque governments, at least in two of them (Gabon and the Congo).
Besides, Gabon, the Congo and Angola they abstained last week in a UN General Assembly vote calling for a withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. “We must combat the story that says there is a separation between Ukraine and the rest of the world (non-Western countries),” said the president, who had already reproached several African leaders last summer for their indifference to the Ukrainian cause and opposition to adopt sanctions against Russia. This time, he wanted to show himself “more modest & rdquor; and claimed his “pragmatism & rdquor ;.
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In fact, Macron received criticism for his multiple meetings in recent weeks with some of the most controversial African leaders. For example, at the beginning of February he received Abiy Ahmed, president of Ethiopia, whose Army was accused of “war crimes & rdquor; in the bloody conflict in the Tigre region. The day before, he had met with the Chadian Mahamat Idriss Déby, who took the reins of his country after carrying out a coup and succeeded his father, who had been in power for 30 years.
And his tour this week has been called into question for meeting in the midst of Gabon’s election campaign with President Ali Bongo, whose family has ruled the oil-rich country with an iron fist for more than 50 years. A realpolitk which seems to be the result of the French decline in Africa. And the need to counter it however. Macron defends maintaining influence, but based on a ‘softpower’ strategy, less military presence and more cultural and economic bridges.