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09 July 2004
Africa Critical to U.S., International Security, Analysts Say
Report recommends greater U.S. diplomatic, intelligence presence
Washington -- Africa has become a potential battleground between "the forces of terrorism and anti-terrorist allies" and will be increasingly critical to the United States' strategic interests, a former U.S. State Department official said July 8.
"Africa is a place that is very close to, very important to the Middle East, very important to Europe, as well as being very important to ourselves," said Chester Crocker, who served as assistant secretary of state for African affairs from 1981 to 1989.
Crocker was one of several speakers who highlighted Africa's importance to international security during the unveiling of a new report on U.S. policy toward the continent. The report, which was commissioned by Congress, recommends an ambitious expansion of the U.S. intelligence and diplomatic presence in Africa, including a greater emphasis on "crisis diplomacy."
"Crisis diplomacy is a matter of life and death in Africa," write authors Jeffrey Herbst and Princeton Lyman. "Done correctly, preventive action and peace intervention can save many thousands of lives and promote the fundamental U.S. interest of greater order and stability in Africa."
The report, "Rising U.S. Stakes in Africa," calls in part for greater U.S. funding for U.N. peacekeeping efforts in Africa as well as increased funding to train African militaries. It also recommends greater use of human intelligence and stepped-up efforts to curb the proliferation of surface-to-air missiles across the continent.
Regionally, the authors said, the United States should expand its engagement with Muslim communities in northern Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and elsewhere, and focus its anti-terrorism efforts on three nations: Sudan, Somalia and Nigeria.
These broad recommendations reflect the growing importance of Africa to U.S. foreign policy, participants at the unveiling of the report noted.
"Africa is becoming mainstream. It's being elevated. It's moved beyond the humanitarian afterthought. ... It's very hard to imagine lowering the bar and turning back expectations in a future [U.S.] administration, whether that's Democratic or Republican," said Stephen Morrison, the executive secretary of the panel that produced the recommendations.
The humanitarian crisis in the western Sudanese region of Darfur calls for such sustained U.S. and international support, said Rick Barton, co-director of the post-conflict reconstruction project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a research institute in Washington.
"We believe there needs to be a rapid deployment of a U.N.-sponsored, Chapter Seven peacekeeping and monitoring force throughout Sudan -- north, south, east, west -- that includes a fully equipped quick response force and 500 to 600 international soldiers," he said.
Secretary of State Colin Powell, who discussed the crisis in Darfur during a speech to the conference, said that the United States will continue to pressure the government of Sudan to end the violence, which has forced some 1.2 million people from their homes.
Powell also spoke more broadly about U.S. security interests in Africa, noting that the United States is working with its allies to confront terrorism and crises throughout the region.
"We are working in partnership to end the destabilizing conflicts of the continent which have caused such devastation and misery, conflicts of the kind that we saw in the Sudan, in Liberia, the Congo, and elsewhere," he said.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
