Blinken kicks off four-country Africa tour

(CN) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is kicking off a four-country tour of Africa, hoping to shore up relations with democracies as political upheaval threatens the continent.

As Blinken made his first stop Monday in Cabo Verde, an archipelago country off the continent’s east coast, he reiterated that the Biden administration is “all in when it comes to Africa.”

“The United States is committed to deepening, to strengthening, to broadening our partnerships across Africa, partnerships that benefit Africans and Americans alike,” Blinken said.

Blinken is visiting four democracies in Cabo Verde, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Angola this week as millions in Africa face political uncertainty, military takeovers and widespread violence.

While the Biden administration isn’t facing as much domestic pressure to tackle the continent’s myriad crises, diplomats have been trying to contain the spread of authoritarianism in the Sahel, a large transition zone between the Sahara desert in the north and the savannahs of the south that has seen six military takeovers since 2020. Diplomats also are juggling increasing tensions between Ethiopia and Somalia, a bloody civil war in Sudan and long-running conflict in the Congo.

Meanwhile, Africa has become a frontier for global influence between the United States, Russia and China. China has provided billions in loans for infrastructure projects while Russia’s Wagner Group paramilitary has been deployed in several countries combating terrorism or political instability.

President Joe Biden welcomed African leaders to Washington in 2022 and pledged to visit the continent in 2023, but never made the trip. Instead, his foreign policy focus has centered on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza.

Blinken, however, said Biden is still committed to Africa and “our futures are linked, our prosperity is linked, our people are linked.”

Cabo Verdean Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva, speaking to the press with Blinken, said the trip shows the Biden administration has a “genuine interest in win-win partnerships with Africa.”

“Cabo Verde is a longstanding and consistent partner of the U.S.,” he said through a translator. “We share values of democracy, good governance, respect for human rights, and a defense of human dignity.”

A big topic of discussion in Blinken’s meetings will be the military takeover of Niger, which has threatened to complicate counterrorism efforts in the area. The United States has more than 1,000 troops in the country.

The Nigerien military seized power on July 26 and detained President-elect Mohamed Bazoum. Military leaders have claimed the coup was necessary because of failures in the fight against Islamic insurgencies by several armed groups in the Sahel region, including the Islamic State, al-Qaida and Boko Haram.

Molly Phee, assistant secretary of state for African affairs, told reporters last week that Blinken’s trip won’t only focus on security concerns and will also center on developing economic and commercial ties and promoting health initiatives.

For example, Blinken congratulated Cabo Verde for completing two compacts with the Millennium Challenge Corporation, a U.S.-funded organization providing foreign aid, and starting a third. The compacts are five-year grant agreements between the corporation and governments to boost private sector investment.

“We think this trip will hopefully be very positive,” Phee said. “A lot of times the news out of Africa is negative. … I think it will demonstrate the advances that Africans have made that will contribute to the continued progress on the continent.”

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