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Russia-Africa Summit: The Roadmap to Africa, Shift in Geopolitical Relations

Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent warm greetings to African leaders, business people and participants early October, signaling that everything is set for the first Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi, southern coastal city of Russia.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

26 February, 2021

SADC: The Crisis of South Africa’s National Security Strategy Will Diminish What’s Left of BRIC“S” And Country’s Multipolar Dreams.

Without basic strategic planning document defining its National Interests and Strategic National Priorities, objectives, tasks, and measures in the sphere of national security, Republic of South Africa is unlikely to meet its stated goals in energy security, communications, finance, and state and public security.

By Lungile Cabangani II

21 May, 2021

Will U.S. Sanctions Against Ethiopia Provide Russia with Regional Opening?

The U.S. has recently imposed sanctions against some Ethiopian officials who Washington blames for alleged human rights abuses in the country’s restive Tigray Province. The background context is that members of the previously most important party of the former Ethiopian ruling coalition, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), recently split with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s new Prosperity Party ruling coalition over serious domestic political differences related to his vision for the country.

By Andrew Korybko

6 June, 2021

Is There Any Hope Left For The Horn Of Africa?

The high hopes that many had for a radical improvement of the situation in the Horn of Africa just a few short years ago have been shattered by a combination of internal and international conflicts centered on Ethiopia, but it might be premature to predict that the region won't ever recover since Prime Minister Abiy could drastically turn everything around once more should he have the political will to do so.

By Andrew Korybko

6 June, 2021

SADC: Dr. Lawrence Stergomena Tax Says Goodbye, and Calls for Scaling Up Sustainable Development in Southern Africa.

Exclusive Interview by Kester Kenn Klomegah

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

2 August, 2021

Russia and China: Geopolitical Rivals and Competitors in Africa

Interview by Kester Kenn Klomegah

By Lipton Matthews

4 August, 2021

Germany’s Forgotten Genocide in Namibia

As some world leaders gather in New York for their annual United Nations General Assembly rituals, the September 22 debate on “Reparations, Racial Justice, and Equality for People of African Descent” to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 2001 Durban Racism Conference, will be particularly significant. While at the Durban conference itself, the issue of reparations was not allowed to be debated by former Western slaver and imperial powers, this issue is now firmly on the agenda.

By Professor Adekeye Adebajo

18 September, 2021

Foreign Competition In Guinea: The Scramble For Natural Resources

Guinea has struggled with political instability and endemic corruption since its independence from France in 1958. Despite the country’s poor infrastructure, there is a significant foreign presence in Guinea. Countries are mostly competing for its mineral resources, such as gold, diamonds, bauxite, and iron ore. The United States, along with other foreign powers, vies for access to these resources and for the ability to influence the country’s government.

By Jessica Pickering

22 September, 2021

Forget Kalashnikov? Russian Foreign Policy After Realism

The short-lived rise of liberal idealism in Russia at the end of the Cold War quickly crashed into the realities of that very world, in which there is no place for the weak, and the resulting vacuum of power and domination is quickly occupied by stronger players. It is hardly surprising that realism then emerged as the platform for the revival of Russia as a great power.

By Ivan Timofeev

28 September, 2021

What Does An EU Indo-Pacific Strategy Entail?

The EU strategy currently appears to be pointed more towards building on established partnerships and developing new ones with like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific to ensure its role and growing presence in the Indo-Pacific region.

By Premesha Saha

4 October, 2021

Women’s Empowerment And The Merkel Effect

Before Merkel’s leadership, history recognized a number of famous empowered women, such as Queen Elizabeth, the monarch for the UK and 15 other Commonwealth realms; and the “Iron Lady” Margaret Thatcher, who was UK prime minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the country’s Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990.

By Dr. Diana Galeeva

4 October, 2021

Analyzing the American Hybrid War on Ethiopia

Ethiopia has come under unprecedented pressure from the U.S. ever since it commenced a military operation in its northern Tigray Region last November.

By Andrew Korybko

19 October, 2021

China-Japan Relations: Searching For A New Equilibrium

The importance of stable China-Japan relations cannot be overstated. As the world’s second and third-largest economies, respectively, the impact of steady bilateral ties goes beyond the Asia-Pacific. The complex bilateral relations both have deep linkages and serious fault lines.

By Lucio Blanco Pitlo III

23 October, 2021

Wagner: Putin’s secret weapon on the way to Mali?

France is outraged at the prospect of Russian mercenaries from the Wagner group arriving in Mali. However, Paris is seeking a way out of an unwinnable conflict.

By Richard Rousseau

23 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.

By Peter Clottey, Voice of America (VOA)

26 October, 2021

The Post-Pandemic World and US-China Rivalry

The post-pandemic world will not be determined by the outcome of the confrontation between the US and China, or by splitting the world into two competing camps, writes Nelson Wong, Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Centre for RimPac Strategic and International Studies, speaker at the Special Session of the 18th Annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club.

By Wong Nelson

1 November, 2021

Geopolitical Analysis of the “Power Shift” and Russia's Special Interest in Sudan

Sudan, located in the northeast Africa, has deepening economic crisis, so many social and political forces. While some are advocating for developing democracy, others have, under the circumstances, aligned with the military, which has accused the civilian governing parties of mismanagement and monopolizing power.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

3 November, 2021

African Union Must Implement Strategies to Reverse Military Coups

Over the last 14 months, several African governments have been subjected to numerous attempts and actual military usurpations of political authority. In Niger, which is one of the world’s largest producers of uranium, it was reported that elements within the defense forces were thwarted in efforts to take control of the government on March 31 of 2021.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

4 November, 2021

Documents Show Bill Gates Has Given $319 Million to Media Outlets

In most coverage, Gates’s donations are broadly presented as altruistic gestures. Yet many have pointed to the inherent flaws with this model, noting that allowing billionaires to decide what they do with their money allows them to set the public agenda, giving them enormous power over society.

By Alan MacLeod

22 November, 2021

China: The Upcoming Global Superpower

China holds 17.7% of the world’s total wealth, the second largest share held by any country. It has the world’s largest banking sector, with assets of $40 trillion and the world’s top 4 largest banks all being in China. In 2019, China overtook the US as the home to the highest number of rich people in the world, according to the global wealth report by Credit Suisse. It has the highest number of rich people in the world’s top 10% of wealth since 2019. There were 658 Chinese billionaires and 3.5 million millionaires.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

28 November, 2021

The Global Pandemic Pushing Africa into A Severe Job Crisis

The economic principles have to be pursued and demanded with the same energy as the political ones. Fundamentally, it is the responsibility of the state, controlled by democratic institutions and an active civil society, to ensure that economic growth actually translates into employment creation.

By Johann Ivanov

28 November, 2021

China and Africa Move into New Era of Cooperation

Africa is experiencing a flowing tide of solidarity and self-strengthening, and the continent’s influence in international affairs continues to grow. It is now forging ahead with the development of free trade zones, accelerating industrialization and modernization, and heading towards the bright future envisioned in the AU’s Agenda 2063.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

30 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”.

By Salim Lamrani

30 November, 2021

Why APEC Still Matters More Than Ever

The United States and China both have skin in the APEC game. The setting in which they must deal is multilateral, and their dealings are on full display to all other 19 members. APEC is not a negotiating forum that delivers formal inter-state agreements or has legal supra-national authority. It gives equal voice to, and requires consensus among, all its members, large, small and middling. It is no accident that the Biden-Xi summit follows hard on the heels of APEC.

By Peter Drysdale

2 December, 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.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

8 December, 2021

South Africa’s Police: A Rigid Bureaucracy Struggling To Reform

The SAPS should fully embrace a non-militaristic ethos oriented towards public service and minimal use of force. Police leadership, and the governance system that oversees policing in South Africa, must also be revitalised.

By David Bruce

11 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.

By Hafsa Halawa

11 December, 2021

China And Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport: Reading Between The Lines

In the aftermath of this development, Ugandan authorities have been consistently insisting on three issues: The grace period is yet to expire and that the Ugandan government is confident of not defaulting on any obligations on repayment; that the terms of the loans are semi-concessional in nature and in line with Uganda’s infrastructure financing programme; and in the interest of transparency, the government has made the loan agreement available to the members of the Parliament.

By Abhishek Mishra

11 December, 2021

The New Era Of Great Power Competition And The Biden Administration: Emerging Patterns And Principles

Geostrategic Interactions. Russia and China present distinct competitive threats to the United States around the globe. In many regions, Russia often poses the more immediate challenge, whereas the repercussions from Chinese economic investments manifest themselves subtly and will likely undermine U.S. strategic interests more gradually.

By Thomas F. Lynch III

27 December, 2021

Chaos continues in Libya

The main focus should be on elections and the democratic transition to bring the country back, not on the fate of the national unity government. However, there must also be an 'equal opportunity and no candidate should have an unfair advantage and there must be an electoral platform while in an official role.

By Miral Sabry Al Ashry

2 January, 2022

Lindiwe Sisulu: Hi Mzansi (South Africa), have we seen justice?

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ms Lindiwe Sisulu, having a breakfast engagement with members of Diplomatic Corps based in South Africa, Pretoria. 19/02/2019; photo:Yandisa Monakali/DNS

By Lindiwe Sisulu

11 January, 2022

Africa’s Path To Recovery In An Uncertain World

Beyond the health crisis, securing the recovery will be a complex task, requiring policymakers to make difficult trade-offs to meet people’s immediate and long-run needs, while avoiding excessive debt. Achieving this balance is never easy, but it is more challenging than ever in today’s uncertain environment. Each country’s course will be guided by its own circumstances, including economic growth, inflation pressures, budget space, and its ability to attract public and private financing.

By Kristalina Georgieva, Macky Sall

13 January, 2022

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.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

13 January, 2022

EU-Africa Trade Relations

The potential to increase trade, economic growth, job creation and integration across the continent remains enormous, because today, only around 17% of African trade flows take place between African countries.

By Valdis Dombrovskis

27 January, 2022

Burkina Faso Military Coup Reflects Wave of Insecurity in West Africa

The U.S. nor France has the willingness to provide genuine assistance to the African people in their contemporary struggles for economic development and territorial sovereignty. The mass sentiment against Paris and Washington is well-founded. What is needed is revolutionary organization which can bring together the people of the region in a program aimed at continental unity and socialist reconstruction.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

1 February, 2022

African Enslavement and the Rise of Capitalism in North America and Beyond

A series of rebellions by the enslaved and the Civil War in the U.S. led to the demise of the system of involuntary servitude. However, the dominance of world capitalism has intensified the economic exploitation of a global proletariat.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

4 February, 2022

Unite to Save South Africa

I have always located the problems we face within an economic model which promotes inequality and the desperation of the many, who suffer at the hands of the minority who are rich. As levels of desperation rise and the vulnerability of the marginalised increases, the potential for anti-constitutional, populist demagoguery will grow in South Africa.

By Thabo Makgoba

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.

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

23 February, 2022

After 60 Years of Independence Algeria Remains a Center of International Affairs

France along with other European imperialist states such as Spain, Portugal, Britain, Italy, Germany, Belgium and the United States had met in Berlin in 1884-1885 where they carved up the African continent into spheres of interests based upon their overall strengths economically and militarily.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

13 April, 2022

Libya: Why the meetings of the constitutional track in Cairo under the auspices of the United Nations

Libya will continue to suffer from an ongoing struggle for power between a government headed by Abdel Hamid Dabaiba, and Fathi Bashagha, Prime Minister, and the security tension in the capital will continue

By Miral Sabry Al Ashry

21 April, 2022

Execution in Grand Rapids Illustrates Failure to End Police Terrorism

Over two weeks after Patrick Lyoya, 26, was stopped, chased, tackled and shot in the back of the head by a Grand Rapids patrolman, killing him instantly, there still has not been any punitive action taken against the white officer responsible for the death of the Congolese immigrant.

By Abayomi Azikiwe

24 April, 2022

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