Africa Week in Review – March 7, 2014

03/07/14
Natalie Chwalisz
Africa
U.S. Policy, Military and Police Aid, U.S. Policy, Military, Conflict, Politics and Security, Arms Control

This week, the U.S. Department of Defense laid out its policy for Africa in the coming year, while the U.S. Department of State released its budget request for Fiscal Year 2015. Read about this, and other security related news in the region, below.

U.S. Defense Posture in the Region

o   Countering violent extremism and enhancing stability in East Africa;

o   Countering violent extremism and enhancing stability in North and West Africa;

o   Protecting U.S. personnel and facilities;

o   Enhancing stability in the Gulf of Guinea; and

o   Countering the Lord’s Resistance Army.

Rodriguez further addressed the U.S. Department of Defense’s concern with the expansion of al-Qaeda in Africa and the challenges associated with the continent’s various regional conflicts.

In response to questions at the HASC, General Rodriguez stressed the importance of U.S. troops stationed in forward-operating bases in Europe, referring to them as critical for AFRICOM’s mission. He praised the regionally focused Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SPMAGTF) and the recently assigned, regionally focused brigade from the U.S. Army. General Rodriguez confirmed AFRICOM is asking for a regional line division, as well as an intelligence brigade from the army and an engineering unit.

Both at the HASC and the SASC, General Rodriguez noted a lack in intelligence surveillance reconnaissance and crisis response capacity across Africa, especially in North and West Africa.

At the SASC, General Rodriguez faced questions about training of Somali national forces, as well as South Sudan’s army. In terms of Somalia, General Rodriguez confirmed that the U.S. has training personnel on the ground. Regarding South Sudan, General Rodriguez affirmed that the U.S. continues to work with the South Sudanese military (SPLA) in military-to-military engagements, despite the fact that the State Department’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices accuses the SPLA of human rights abuses.

  • The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) released its Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). For Africa, the QDR links persistence of “ungoverned and under-governed territory” to the rise of terrorism, crime and piracy. The U.S. intends to “help build professional, capable military forces” to counteract these security challenges. Additionally, U.S. Special Operations Forces will play a “central role” in countering terrorism by “maintaining persistent forward presence to prevent crises in addition to serving as a crisis response and contingency force.” DOD lists Maghreb, Sahel and Horn of Africa as successful small footprint special operations.

Security News across the Region

  • The Obama Administration released its annual budget request for Fiscal Year 2015. Among the notable developments in the U.S. State Department request is the phase-out of the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (CSO), which was established in 2011 to prevent conflict and help with conflict recovery.
  • The State Department request includes continued funding for training of the South Sudanese military, even as the U.S. Department of State, in a recent human rights reports briefing, accused the South Sudanese military of human rights abuses: “In the world’s newest country, South Sudan, security forces on all sides committed brutal acts against civilians, from killing to torture to rape amid a climate of impunity.”
  • The New York Times examined the United States’ increasing “small footprint” training presence across Africa within new budget constraints, highlighting various training exercises and humanitarian assistance ventures. Within the article, a potential new training program for Nigerian Special Forces is mentioned. Nigeria expert John Campbell objects, pointing to the Nigerian security forces’ awful human rights records, and the eroding Nigerian trust in their government’s security forces:

The security forces’ abuses will almost certainly continue. U.S. training of 850 rangers will be hardly sufficient to change a deep-seated culture of security service abuse of civilians and the resorting to extra-judicial killings.

  • The U.S. Department of Justice announced it is freezing more than $458 million in assets – determined to be corruption proceeds – of former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha.
  • After the United Nations documented that the Somali government systematically diverts weapons to tribal militia, including one al-Shabab leader, the UN Security Council considered reinstating the temporarily-lifted arms embargo on Somalia. This week, the Council voted to extend the easing of the arms embargo, but did enact tighter restrictions.
  • The U.S. Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region, Russ Feingold, traveled to Europe, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to discuss next steps in supporting the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework peace process with regional and donor partners.
  • The U.S. Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force started redeploying to Spain as evacuation efforts in South Sudan end.
  • U.S. Army Africa trained soldiers of the Republic of Guinea Armed Forces in combat skills and battle drills this week.
  • The Christian Science Monitor examined the increasing militarization of anti-poaching efforts in Africa, where private contractors with Special Forces background are training rangers.
  • African Arguments examined whether the Somali national army can be considered a national institution, concluding that the army is made up of three parallel armies. In the meantime, Somali soldiers who were recently fired without pay threatened civilians in Mogadishu.
  • Deadly clashes within the South Sudanese military erupted this week after a dispute over pay and preferential treatment. 
  • East African governments are considering sending a regional security force into South Sudan to enforce the defunct ceasefire deal between government forces and rebels.