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Commentary
The Wall Street Journal

The New Scramble for Africa

The competition for influence will shape the continent’s future. Will the US join?

walter_russell_mead
walter_russell_mead
Ravenel B. Curry III Distinguished Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship
A destroyed aircraft at Khartoum International Airport in Sudan is seen on April 17, 2025, after the Sudanese Armed Forces took control of the airport from the Rapid Support Forces. (Getty Images)
Caption
A destroyed aircraft at Khartoum International Airport in Sudan is seen on April 17, 2025, after the Sudanese Armed Forces took control of the airport from the Rapid Support Forces. (Getty Images)

We need to talk about Africa. With major wars raging in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, increased Chinese and Russian activity, jihadi terrorists gaining ground in many places, and American foreign aid on the chopping block, the failed U.S. policy in Africa is past due for some new thinking.

To think clearly about Africa, we have to discard some accumulated nonsense and illusions that get in the way. To begin, we must drop the myth, endlessly promoted by the NGO-industrial complex of consultants and activists, that the struggle between democracy and dictatorship defines the continent’s politics. If only this were true. In reality, democracy has essentially collapsed in much of Africa. According to Freedom House, only 8% of Africans live in countries that can be called “free.” There are no signs that this trend is going to reverse.

Read the full article in The Wall Street Journal.