Carte blanche
Africa and the new Cold War

The war in Ukraine has given rise to unexpected tensions in the centuries-old relationship between Europe and Africa. Although globalisation has led to mutual economic interdependence, Russia's attack on Ukraine has drawn attention to the unstable nature of these relations and the opposing interests that underpin the stances being taken.

Last year's votes at the UN ‒ on Ukraine on 2 March and on Russia's annexations on 30 September ‒ highlighted the specific narrative adopted by many African countries. While Europe and North America gave their full backing to the UN resolutions, most of the African countries abstained. A standpoint labelled 'dubious' by the European Union, with the President of the European Commission condemning these countries and even wishing to deprive them of support. The United States, on the other hand, passed the Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act. In other words, the Western powers alone know what is good for Africa and who it should associate with. As if the Africans were children who had no right to a different opinion or were incapable of holding views of their own.

The African leaders took hardly any notice of this stance; the general public and the neo-nationalist leaders, on the other hand, were indignant. The latter have a great deal of influence on social media and seized this opportunity to peddle their radical approaches without restraint. Kémi Seba in Benin, Nathalie Yamb in Cameroon and others called on young people to get rid of their regents "who are in thrall to their European and American masters". Some politicians and intellectuals began banging on the same drum and reminded people of the devastating impact Western powers had had on Africa. The case of 'Françafrique', this nebulous legacy of decolonisation, was brought up again.

The neo-Pan-Africanists accuse France of sacrificing the democratic aspirations of the people on the altar of its own interests and ask how can a country so steeped in human rights gain the acceptance of these people if it supports dictators who hold on to power after manipulated elections? How can one believe France, which refuses to abolish the CFA franc, a currency that is supposed to guarantee the sovereignty of countries in the CFA franc zone?

Instead of taking these analyses into account, Paris took the easy way out: President Emmanuel Macron accused Russia and China of being to blame for 'anti-French' sentiment. In his opinion, these two countries are conveying the image of France as a neo-colonialist nation with an 'occupying army.'

Paris has thus passed up an opportunity to do some soul-searching. Emmanuel Macron's response to the boisterous youngsters is to raise a warning finger: European entry and residence permits will be refused, their leaders' accounts frozen. By behaving in this way, he is missing out on a historic compromise that could change relations with tomorrow's African elite. There are other, more modest and more realistic nations that will do this.