Pan-African diplomacy and dialogue could secure global peace
AS RUSSIAN foreign minister Sergei Lavrov was visiting South Africa, US treasury secretary Janet Yellen was on a tour of Senegal, Zambia and South Africa, highlighting the interest of major powers in bolstering their relations with the African continent.
However, Lavrov’s visit attracted much attention, with many analysts criticising the government of South Africa for hosting the Kremlin’s most senior diplomat on the back of raging conflict in Ukraine.
The conflict in Ukraine has widened international polarisation between the West and other countries, casting a shadow over international diplomacy characterised by Western isolation of Russia. However, it is the expectation that other countries should copy and paste Western policy leads in spite of their interests, policy choices and political-cultural experiences that is problematic.
There is a general tendency to overlook the nuances and subtleties of African diplomacy, particularly the postulation of African neutrality and the quest for dialogue. South Africa has stated its position with regards the conflict in Ukraine as “neutrality and non-alignment”, while calling for dialogue.
African diplomacy entails an aversion to sanctions and military interventions, while keeping the doors open for dialogue. International isolation generally shuts the doors on diplomacy and dialogue which, in the end, is the only way to end conflicts. Thus, the emphasis on dialogue in South African, and indeed African diplomacy, is commendable.
Last week, Lavrov paid his second visit to Africa in only six months, after his tour of Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda and the Republic of Congo in July 2022. Russia, a member of BRICS (the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa business communities), whose forthcoming summit will be held in South Africa, is also set to participate in military exercises with South Africa and China in Durban. The Kremlin will host the Russia-Africa summit in July.
Speaking in Dakar, Senegal, Yellen said that the war in Ukraine had stirred “the global economic headwinds ... creating an unnecessary drag on Africa’s economy” and that “Russia’s war and weaponisation of food has exacerbated food insecurity and caused untold suffering”.
In 2022, the US House of Representatives passed the Countering of Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act, which is viewed as a red herring by many critics. The act seeks to impose sanctions on Russian entities which are viewed by the West as conducting “malign” activities on the African continent, but could also lead to the imposition of US sanctions on African governments and businesses dealing with such Russian entities.
Western powers view Lavrov’s visit as part of the Kremlin’s efforts to push back against Western narratives through its own narrative in Africa, to make new friends on the continent, while bolstering old friendships in the face of Western sanctions. Critics of the Kremlin further say that Russia plays the victim card when meeting with African leaders, while projecting a rejuvenated love for Africa, whose many leaders benefited from ideological convergence and links with the former USSR during their struggles for independence.
The relationship between Africa and the Kremlin is not historically static, but subject to emerging opportunities and challenges. Russia also seeks new opportunities for co-operation ranging from security to concrete economic and financial deals to bolster historical relations with the continent.
Compared to China, the EU and the US, the Russian economic influence in Africa is marginal. In 2021, Africa-Russia trade rose to only $20 billion, which amounted to about one 10th of Africa-China trade.
The Kremlin’s controversial military-security diplomacy has become the centre piece of its relations with many African countries facing a range of domestic security challenges. Various sources report that between 2017 and 2021, African countries imported between 44% to 49% of their weapons from Russia, and in 2019 arms contracts had been concluded with 30 African countries. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says that exports to Africa accounted for 18% of all Russian arms exports, making Russia the largest exporter of weapons to African countries.
Russian private security advisers or private military contractors have played crucial security roles in Africa’s conflict hot spots, such as Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan, Chad, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique, among others. A lot of African security, military, intelligence and naval personnel received military training in Russia itself, while South Africa’s navy previously trained with the Russian navy.
There is no doubt that the conflict in Ukraine has amplified the precarious realities of food insecurity in Africa, exposing the frailties of international dependence for food and agriculture products.
The resultant disruptions from the conflict in Ukraine to global value chains and logistics has triggered food and energy inflation, severely affecting livelihoods in African countries, dimming prospects of quick post-Covid-19 pandemic recovery, risking broader instability in fragile states on the continent.
Many African countries have insisted on diplomacy and dialogue as the way to end the conflict in Ukraine. The South African government took a neutral position over the conflict in Ukraine, expressing a desire to mediate, while calling for dialogue.
Speaking alongside Lavrov, Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Naledi Pandor said: “As South Africa we consistently articulate that we will always stand ready to support the peaceful resolution of conflicts on the (African) continent and throughout the globe.”
In August, SADC, during its 42nd Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government strongly expressed its collective opposition to a proposed US law on countering Russian influence and activities in Africa. The sub-regional organisation complained that the Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act subjected the African continent to unilaterally punitive measures.
African countries view the act as reflecting a patronising Western attitude towards African governments, while undermining their self-determination and national sovereignty. South Africa and other African governments have demanded the withdrawal of the act, which they view as unjustifiably punitive and coercive. African countries have continued to call for an equally representative geopolitical global order based on a multi-polar world order which equally represents and respects the interests and aspirations of the world community of states.
Diplomatic engagement between African countries and the world powers is crucial for global peace and security, including ending the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Africa is redefining itself, raising and asserting its agency on various multilateral issues, including the conflict in Ukraine, its impact on Africa, and the need for diplomatic solutions to foster global security. To the extent that African countries continue on a path of multilateral diplomacy, they are assured of their role in protecting global peace, security and prosperity.
“Russia’s war and weaponization of food has exacerbated food insecurity and caused untold suffering.
JANET YELLEN US Treasury Secretary