Africa

As Russia and the United States Seek Influence in Africa, Strategic Pitfalls Loom

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s four-country Africa swing attracted a great deal of attention in Western media outlets, which framed his trip as a diplomatic campaign intended to prove that the West’s efforts to isolate Russia have obvious limits. In Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda, and the Republic of Congo, Lavrov sought to deflect responsibility for the serious food and fuel disruptions resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and position Moscow as a champion of state sovereignty and independence. It’s an audacious claim from a country currently engaged in a campaign to annex part of its neighbor. Meanwhile, the world waits for Russia to lift its blockade on Ukrainian grain and allow ships to pass through the Black Sea.

France could deliver drones to help Benin battle militants

France could deliver drones and more sophisticated weapons to Benin to help it tackle a worsening Islamist insurgency that is threatening the region, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday.

Macron made the pledge during a joint press conference with Benin’s President Patrice Talon on the second leg of his three-nation tour of Cameroon, Benin and Guinea-Bissau.

L’inquiétante expansion du jihadisme en Afrique

L’hydre jihadiste semble se répandre à une vitesse exponentielle sur le continent, atteignant désormais de nombreux pays longtemps épargnés.

Le 5 juillet 2022, le groupe Etat islamique en Afrique de l’Ouest (ISWAP), faction dissidente de Boko Haram, a attaqué la prison de Kujé, près d’Abuja, la capitale fédérale du Nigeria, et fait évader près de 900 prisonniers, dont des hauts cadres du mouvement.

Al-Qaïda fait monter la pression au Mali

Attaque kamikaze au coeur du pouvoir malien, incursions de plus en plus au sud: les jihadistes de la nébuleuse sahélienne d’Al-Qaïda ont accentué ces derniers jours la pression sur la junte malienne, avec une coordination des opérations inédite.

Macron cherche à réveiller l’influence française en Afrique

Emmanuel Macron veut faire de l’Afrique l’une des priorités de son second quinquennat, face à la concurrence de la Chine et de la Russie, mais en pariant sur le “soft power” plutôt que sur la politique ou le militaire, les outils traditionnels d’influence de la France.

Algeria: Eni Announces Another Discovery In Berkine North Onshore Basin

Eni and SONATRACH announced Tuesday a further discovery in Sif Fatima II concession, located in the Berkine North Basin in the Algerian desert.

The Rhourde Oulad Djemaa Ouest-1 (RODW-1) exploration well, in the Sif Fatima II research perimeter, is the third well in the exploration drilling campaign. It led to a discovery of oil and associated gas in the Triassic sandstones of the Tagi reservoir. During the production test, the well produced 1,300 bbl/day of oil and about 2 mmscfd of associated gas.