By Pieter Cleppe
French President Emmanuel Macron will prioritise increasing cooperation and support in the field of food and security to West-African countries, Euractiv reports.
It notes that he has pushed this for this during his four-day trip to the region last month, when he visited Cameroon, Benin and Guinea-Bissau.
In particular, he wants France and the EU to challenge Russia, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reportedly received a particularly warm welcome in the Congo Republic and Uganda.
Seventeen African countries, in particular Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa, South Sudan, Madagascar, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, abstained in a March vote on a United Nations resolution condemning the Russian invasion.
🇫🇷🌍🇷🇺In competition with #Russia, #France's
Pres Macron pledges food security boost during West Africa triphttps://t.co/k729R7jqEb— Prof. Michael Tanchum (@michaeltanchum) August 22, 2022
African countries are keen on food security. Last month, Macron has stressed that according to him, it is not correct that European sanctions have brought food inflation to Africa.
🇫🇷🌍 #Macron in Africa: The French President has declared his country will support Africa's needs for security.
He has also sought to counter the narrative that European sanctions have brought food inflation to Africa, not the war in #Ukraine.
James Vasina has more ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/lfqXHP3mON
— FRANCE 24 English (@France24_en) July 27, 2022
Macron also stated:
“Russia, in fact, has started a new type of world hybrid war. This is quite clear for us Europeans. I say this for the African continent”.
He further warned against the growing influence of Russian “disinformation” in the region and accused Russia of using energy and food in a new type of “hybrid” war. Last week, the French army however left its Gao base, ending a nine-year mission in Mali, following tensions over the fact that Mali’s transitional government permitted Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group to be active on its territory.
France is almost single handedly providing a modicum of stability in the Sahel region of North Africa, Macron understands what a food crisis will do there, violence, chaos and millions of refugees flooding into Europe.
— Twain's Mustache (@TwainsMustache) March 17, 2022
Picture: French President Emmanuel Macron (Copyright: Wikimedia Door Влада на Република Северна Македонија – Заеднички изјави за медиуми пред работната вечера во Париз со претседателот на Франција Емануел Макрон, PDM-owner, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=114931456 )