BACKGROUND PAPERS TO BE CIRCULATED IN THE STATE DEPARTMENT -- BY SPECIAL COMMAND OF SECR. OF STATE COLIN L. POWELL
African Affairs, Volume 99, Issue 396, pp. 435-448: Abstract.
The French military in Africa: past and present
Shaun Gregory
Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford, UK
In the post-Cold War era, and particularly since the events in Rwanda in 1994, French military policy in Africa has been in transition. The emergence of this new policy trajectory has coincided with, and been informed by, the restructuring of French defence policy presented in the government defence White Paper of 1994 and in the Presidential document Une Défense Nouvelle of 1996. As part of these reforms France is ending conscription and reorientating its armed forces towards the exercise of greater military power outside Europe in the novel roles of prévention and projection.
This article explores the reasons for the changes in French military policy in Africa and looks at the trends in the projection of conventional military forces that are shaping the future role of the French military in Africa. To do this it outlines this role during the Cold War and examines the reasons for the relative stability of French policy. It then charts the events and processes which have precipitated change in the post-Cold War era and looks at future trends which point to a continuing but refocused role for the French military in Africa.
Full text:
www3.oup.co.uk:80/afrafj/hdb/Volume_99/Issue_396/
African Affairs, Volume 99, Issue 396, pp. 355-371: Abstract.
From neglect to 'virtual engagement': the United States and its new paradigm for Africa
Chris Alden
Department of International Relations, London School of Economics, London, UK
The promotion of a new American relationship with Africa is one of the Clinton Administration's most visible initiatives in the foreign policy sphere. From the White House summit on Africa to the highly publicized presidential tour of the continent, the US government has sought to demonstrate its commitment to reversing the pattern of neglect that characterized relations in the post-colonial period. The new interest in Africa expressed by Washington is complemented by the concurrent launching of a domestic initiative that targets the development of a 'new constituency for Africa' aimed at linking local American interest groups with foreign policy concerns. Taken together, these initiatives purport to lay the foundation for an enduring partnership with commercial and political depth that will ensure that African issues become a perennial feature of the American political landscape. However, in spite of this overt commitment to activism, there is much in the formation of the new relationship that is suggestive of the continued limits of American interests in the continent.
Full text:
www3.oup.co.uk:80/afrafj/hdb/Volume_99/Issue_396/ |
