Securing Africa

By David McCormack

For decades, the United States has regarded its security interests in Sub-Saharan Africa as insignificant, instead treating the region as little more than a dumping ground for humanitarian assistance. Nowhere has this attitude been more conspicuous than in the structuring of U.S. Unified Commands (inter-service military commands) such that responsibility for the continent is divided among the European, Central and Pacific Commands.

Recent reports, however, indicate that the Department of Defense, under the forward-thinking leadership of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace, strongly favors the creation of a separate military command for Africa. Under the right conditions, such a move would vastly improve the Nation’s security posture, as the African landscape is increasingly dominated by elements intent on undermining America’s wellbeing.

Islamofascism on the March

Islamofascists have found Sub-Saharan Africa to be particularly useful in advancing their agenda. With its massive Muslim population of 250 million, the region has become progressively radicalized over the past three decades through the introduction of Islamist ideologies by states from the Middle East. In fact, at least tens of billions of dollars have been poured into the subcontinent in support of Islamism. It is therefore hardly surprising that the state faith of Saudi Arabia – Wahhabism – has become the most dynamic ideological strain of Islamism in Sub-Saharan Africa, given that the Ministry of Islamic Affairs reportedly receives more money for activity in Africa than does the Foreign Ministry.

This environment, permeated with extremist Islamic thought, has created legions of terrorists and provided them a hospitable base of operations. Prominent international terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda and Hezbollah have assumed a strong presence – primarily to finance and plan, but also to carry out, attacks – while several local terror groups such as al-Itihaad al-Islami and the Salafist Group for Call and Combat have emerged to wage jihad for control of Africa itself.

China on the Rise

Communist China has recently surfaced as a major player in the continent’s affairs, in an attempt both to put a stranglehold on Africa’s natural resources – especially its oil, which currently accounts for nearly 30 percent of Chinese imports – and to cultivate alliances that will increase its weight in the international political arena, with a primary objective being the diplomatic isolation of democratic Taiwan.

China’s presence, not surprisingly, has abetted Africa’s worst tendencies. For example, massive oil concessions granted to the PRC in Sudan have been exchanged for Beijing’s political and physical support of the genocidal, terrorist-sponsoring regime in Khartoum. Not only has China played a leading role in preventing the international community from taking serious action on Darfur, but it sold military hardware – including tanks, helicopters and anti-personnel mines – to Khartoum even as ethnic cleansing was being carried out.

In the Crosshairs

For a better understanding of the types of challenges America faces south of the Sahara, consider the following sampler:

Somalia. Nearly 13 years after the United States beat an ignominious retreat from Somalia, another force has moved to impose its own version of stability – that of Islamofascism. Over the past several months, the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) has been rapidly establishing itself as the most powerful military and political force in the country, and is poised to either topple the internationally-supported Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Significantly, both the ICU’s ideology and the manner in which it is seizing control are eerily reminiscent of the Taliban’s rise in Afghanistan.

The possible ascension of this "African Taliban," moreover, threatens to engulf the entire Horn of Africa in war. Unwilling to accept a radical Islamist neighbor, Ethiopia is preparing to strike at the ICU, which would almost certainly lead Eritrea – the ICU’s largest patron and Ethiopia’s greatest enemy – to retaliate, in turn potentially drawing in Kenya and Sudan on the sides of the TFG and the ICU, respectively. In addition to disrupting America’s counter-terrorism activities from its 1,800-strong base in Djibouti, a regional war would likely jeopardize passage through the strategically important Bab el Mandeb Strait, which is one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

 Nigeria. In the shake-up that followed liberation from military rule in 1999, twelve predominantly Muslim states in northern Nigeria took advantage of the central government’s weakened position and adopted separate legal codes based on full Shari’a, leading to interfaith fighting that has taken, according to some estimates, up to ten thousand lives. Recognizing the potential created by this situation, in a May 2003 tape, Osama bin Laden named Nigeria as one of six states "most eligible for liberation."

Additionally, the petroleum sector in Nigeria – which is the fifth largest supplier to the United States – is proving to be increasingly problematic. Over the course of the past months, ethnically-based militias have targeted the industry by kidnapping foreign workers and destroying critical infrastructure, shutting down up to 20 percent Nigeria’s total daily output. Additionally, China has augmented its profile exponentially. As explained by Iheanyi Ohiaeri, head of business development for Nigeria’s National Petroleum Corporation, "We haven’t been totally invaded by China yet, but it will come."

South Africa. Unquestionably the dominant actor on the continent due to its comparative economic strength, military power, and rich natural resources, the ruling African National Congress has been steadily leading the country – and hence the rest of Africa – away from a healthy relationship with the United States and toward ideologies and nations opposed to American interests.

Specifically, South Africa has strengthened ties with China, Iran, Syria and other gross violators of human rights and state-sponsors of terrorism, and last year concluded a defense and intelligence pact with Zimbabwe, signaling its solidarity with Africa’s most brutal dictator, Robert Mugabe. Of special concern, however, is the rapprochement taking place between South Africa and Muammar Gadhafi’s Libya, forming a north-south axis that is working with other radical political forces to control both the African Union and its representative governments.

What Needs to be Done

The United States would undoubtedly benefit both from streamlining and increasing efforts in Africa through the establishment of a new Unified Command. However, it is tremendously important this be done correctly. By locating certain Unified Commands inside the U.S. (think Southern Command and Central Command), America has surrendered significant influence in the regions it hopes to affect. Critically, then, a proper engagement strategy for Africa requires placing this new command where it will have the greatest impact – on the continent.

Fortunately, options for the development of such an operation exist, though they will take time to cultivate. In the short-term, then, it may be preferable to create a Sub-Unified Command for the continent within the European Command ? where much expertise on Africa is currently housed ? while working to relocate in theater in the longer-term.

Now more than ever, the United States must recognize that it is being targeted by enemies of freedom in an ideological battle for Africa that, if lost, will undermine U.S. success in the larger War for the Free World. America has so far been absent from this encounter, costing us dearly in terms of strategic position. It is time to engage.