29 Nov 2024
African Think Tank

Association For Strategic Culture and Research Foundation

African Think Tank
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China and Russia Launch a ‘Global Resistance Economy’
The U.S. will ignore the message from Anchorage. It is already testing China over Taiwan, and is preparing an escalation in Ukraine, to test Russia.
15 March, 2021
Criticism Highlights Russia's Media Weakness in Africa
In her weekly media briefing July 23, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized United States support for educational programs, media and NGOs in Africa. In addition, Zakharova said
29 July, 2021
Russia and China: Geopolitical Rivals and Competitors in Africa
Interview by Kester Kenn Klomegah
4 August, 2021
The Battle for Indian Ocean and Island States
Russia has taken an increasing interest in strengthening consistently its diplomacy with small island States especially Cape Verde, Mauritius, Maldives and Seychelles. Late December, the Kremlin appointed Deputy Director Artem Kozhin at the Foreign Ministry as the new ambassador to the island of Seychelles, signaling the strategic importance it attaches to this island state of Seychelles with an estimated population of 85 thousand, located in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar and east of Kenya.
14 August, 2021
African Leaders Must Prioritise Climate Risks – Verkooijen
In this insightful and wide-ranging interview, Professor Patrick Verkooijen, Chief Executive Officer of Global Center on Adaptation discusses the organization’s establishment, its main objectives, challenges and plans for the future.
19 August, 2021
More African Countries Register Russia's Sputnik Vaccine. What Next After The Registration Campaign?
Russia's drive to share Sputnik V vaccine, of course, offers a chance to raise its image and strengthen alliances in Africa. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation has made efforts promoting the vaccine using all its channels. But supply and delivery have largely lagged behind, the pledges have simply not been fulfilled. Russian authorities have oftentimes said that they would step up efforts for fruitful cooperation in combating coronavirus in Africa.
17 September, 2021
The Great Games of Diplomacy: Russia Sees Neocolonialism as An Investment Barrier in Africa
Some argue that the best way to fight neocolonialism is to invest in order to jostle for economic influence. Nevertheless, Russia has sought to convince Africans over the past years of the likely dangers of neocolonial tendencies perpetrated by the former colonial countries and the scramble for resources on the continent.
30 September, 2021
New U.S. travel rules excludes foreigners vaccinated with Russia's Sputnik V
Associated Press news report headlined - Russians flock to Serbia for Western-made Covid-19 Vaccines – described families from Rostov-on-Don located in southern Russia, wanted to visit the West, looked for a vaccine that would allow them to travel freely - a quest that brought them to Serbia.
13 October, 2021
Q&A: African Development Bank Chief Says Continent Ripe for Investment
VOA’s Peter Clottey spoke with Akinwumi Adesina, Nigerian economist, to discuss why he thinks the continent is ripe for foreign investment – especially from the United States. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
17 October, 2021
Q&A: At Midterm, Sierra Leone President Vows to Continue Reforms
With two years left in his term, Sierra Leonean President Julius Maada Bio told Voice of America that expanding political freedoms, improving education, holding past leaders accountable for corruption, and promoting gender equality are his administration’s priorities.
26 October, 2021
From Trade Gateway to Risk Guarantees: What Russian Businesses Can Offer Africa
Africa today is one of the most attractive markets and promising regions for long-term investment. The continent shows the world's highest consumption growth rates. Russia has recently joined business activities in the region. The first-ever Russia-Africa summit, held in Sochi in 2019, was a powerful impetus for this. The second one is due in 2022. Both sides expect a considerable increase in the number of contracts that will be concluded.
29 October, 2021
France and Africa: Towards a New Model of Relations?
In recent decades, French foreign policy in Africa has been preoccupied with a jump-start of relations with the African nations, marked by a gradual curtailment of the Françafrique, a concept that provided for a direct military and political intervention in affairs of the French-speaking nations on the continent. France is now in search for a more balanced framework for interaction with the countries in the region.
9 November, 2021
Why Russians Are Complaining How to Engage with Africa
In order to raise the economic influence, Russians have been making efforts to identify a structured finance mechanism for mega infrastructure projects such as nuclear power and energy, natural resources exploration and to significantly increase trade with Africa
11 November, 2021
Q&A: NAM has a critical role to play: Interview with one of the most influential women in Africa
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, chair at the University of Mauritius, sworn in as the 6th President and the First Female President of the Republic of Mauritius (in 2015).
14 November, 2021
Sudan’s Future: The Israel Connection
On October 25 Sudan’s military, under the leadership of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, seized power and placed the country under martial law. Less than a month later there are strong signs that Burhan may have bitten off more than he can chew and is starting to regret masterminding the coup.
22 November, 2021
Fifty Truths about Fidel Castro
48. After a trip to Cuba in 2001, Arthur Schlesinger Jr., a historian and special advisor to President Kennedy, raised the question of the cult of personality: “Fidel Castro does not encourage the cult of personality. In Havana it is difficult to find a poster or even a post card with a photo of Castro on it. The icon of Fidel’s revolution, visible everywhere, is Che Guevara”.
30 November, 2021
Russia-Africa Relations: “Geopolitical Arena with Many Players Operating”
Russia has to upgrade or scale up its collaborative engagement with Africa. It has to consider seriously launching more public outreach programmes, especially working with civil society to change public perceptions and the private sector to strengthen its partnership with Africa. In order to achieve this, it has to surmount the challenges, take up the courage and work consistently with both private and public sectors and with an effective Action Plan.
8 December, 2021
Burning Ambition: Egypt’s Return To Regional Leadership And How Europe Should Respond
Egyptian foreign ministry officials interviewed for this paper describe the last decade of Egypt’s regional positioning as “defensive” in nature as the country contended with domestic issues.
11 December, 2021
Collective Sanctions Isolating Mali in the Sahel Sahara as Russia Rides the Wave of Anticolonialism
Over the past few years, Russian authorities have in their speeches expressed anti-colonial sentiments and openly declared unflinching support for fighting against what they referred to as neocolonial tendencies in Africa. Russia is particularly against France in French-speaking African countries in West Africa including the entire Sahel and Central African Republic.
27 December, 2021
Implications of the Expanded 1619 Project
In August of 1619 the British settlers had occupied sections of what later became known as the State of Virginia for more than a decade. After the introduction of enslaved Africans in the colony, the plantation system accelerated through the production of tobacco and other agricultural commodities which required the acquisition of more human laborers who would never be paid for their work.
13 January, 2022
St. Petersburg – Venue for Second African Leaders Summit
In their first joint declaration, emerging from the Russia-Africa summit, at the initiative of African participants a new dialogue mechanism—the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum—was created. The declaration stipulated that all top-level meetings take place within its framework once every three years, alternately in Russia and in an African state. It says further that the foreign ministers of Russia and three African countries—the current, future and previous chairpersons of the African Union—will meet for annual consultations.
20 January, 2022
Russian Policy Failing Africa’s Sustainable Development
After the State Duma meeting, Kester Kenn Klomegah fixed this interview with Ambassador Nicholas Sango who willingly shared his views and thoughts on a few current pertinent issues connecting Russia and Africa. Below are the interview excerpts
30 January, 2022
A Conversation With Ghana’s Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia
In an exclusive interview with PAV, Dr Bawumia sheds light on progress with key segments of the agenda of President Akufo Addo under his purview, COVID 19, and other seminal developments across the continent.
17 February, 2022
Russia and the Maghreb: Future Geostrategic Perspectives?
Today, the Maghreb is not a fundamental interest for Russia, but rather a source of economic and political opportunities. The Russian redeployment in the Maghreb, which began during Vladimir Putin's second term in 2004 and has been over the last decade, relies on new vectors, distinct from the old anti-imperialist aura from which the Soviet Union had benefited in Algeria and Libya.
23 February, 2022
African Students Further Expose the Racist Character of the Ukrainian State
As western media outlets seek to build sympathy for the NATO-backed regime in Kiev, Africans and others oppressed groups are facing targeted discrimination and violence.
3 March, 2022
United Nations Secretary General Holds Talks in Moscow and Kyiv on Ukraine War
Obviously, the U.S. and NATO actions indicate that the Biden administration and its European allies are not interested in a speedy conclusion to the war in Ukraine. The sanctions imposed by the U.S. and the EU has created a crisis in Western Europe where several leading states such as Germany are continuing, out of necessity, to purchase oil and natural gas from the Russian Federation.
3 May, 2022
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