Niger

🇳🇪 It is very difficult to help Africa, because we don't have any reliable partners on the continent. The USA has tried to create alliances with Africa's democratic governments only to have other countries like Russia and China destabilize these democratic governments and fund military juntas who take control of the countries. This is a repeating phenomenon. It's not like this is the first time this has ever happened. It happens over and over again in Africa, so much so that it should be expected and foreseen by the US team.

I don't understand why the USA built a $100M dollar air base in Niger without a legal agreement in place that ensured we would be able to maintain control of that air base regardless of who is in power in the country. We have a naval base in Cuba, despite bad relations between our two countries. If we can maintain a naval base in Cuba, we should be able to maintain an air base in Niger. Apparently the US team in Africa did not negotiate favorable terms for the air base in Niger - that's the first problem.

Clearly our work in Niger has not generated any goodwill towards the USA, or Russia would not be there right now. It's a waste of resources to provide aid to Africa if it does not generate goodwill between the African people and the American people. It's a waste of resources to spend $100M on a base you can not use. It's a waste of resources to provide military aid and train African troops if it does not generate goodwill towards the USA. We're essentially training a potential future foe. The African people must know where the aid is coming from in order for the aid to generate goodwill. This requires some kind of campaign to educate the African public on what the USA is doing for them. The African strategy has been a massive failure. It is time for a new strategy and a new US team in Africa.

I still believe we did the right thing by not using military force in Niger. Otherwise Niger would be exactly like Libya right now, we would be in the middle of it all, and the world would blame us for it.

The instability in Africa will only get worse and lead to more poverty. Russia will fund both the terrorists and the junta to ensure everyone is on their side just like they do in Sudan and other locations. Russia will steal everything they possibly can from the Africans, because it is the only thing Russians know how to do, and the Africans will be left with absolutely nothing. This is the reality that Africa faces now in many countries.

First and foremost, the USA needs a new soft power strategy for the African continent ASAP. Soft power is essential for gaining the trust and respect of the civilian populations. We must earn their trust and respect in order to partner with their governments, especially democracies. xo