“Every time Trump or members of his administration have lashed out at Europe, including Ukraine, Europeans have absorbed the blow with a forced smile and bent over backwards to flatter the White House.” (…)
“While a systemic answer to Europe’s security conundrum is not in sight, Europeans do have the levers to prevent Ukraine’s capitulation and create the conditions for a just peace.”
What about Africa? There’s a lot to gain in Africa. It’s not all war and corruption, there’s plenty of oppertunity to grow business relations. With Europe’s declining worker population and Africa’s growing population, it might be a good idea to look at emigration or outsourcing opportunities there.
Taking in Africans is political poison right now in Europe, and outsourcing local industries has never been super popular even if it makes sense.
I’m sure it will happen, Africa will develop and start taking on lots of low-end manufacturing and similar, and Europe will probably be a very good customer. But, in terms of a strategic alliance for the EU, most African nations are not a contender. South Africa maybe.
Due to the colonial history most of Africa isn’t particularly fond of Europe. And modern France being insensitive on the issue certainly didn’t help this lately.
What European countries should do is to make a big noise about how the Russia is a colonial empire. There are tens and tens of cultures living under the Russia’s fist, without rights to rule their lands and with all their natural resources extracted for the colonizing country’s use, leaving almost nothing in the colony itself.
The Russia is just the same as France used to be, and what France still partially is. It is ridiculous that anti-colonialists in Africa end up supporting the only colonial empire that has never done the least to free its colonies even to a small extent.
Very few in Africa are under any sort of illusions about Russia. They just play both sides for their own benefit.
And it is anyways China that has a much bigger influence these days in many African countries.
Very few what in Africa are under any sort of illusions about the Russia?
I would say that regarding the people ruling those countries you are either correct or mostly correct, but regarding the general public… I would be surprised if things were as you say. Europe has done nothing about it, the Russia has done a lot about it. How could they have a realistic view of the Russia when nobody is doing anything whatsoever to counter the Russian propaganda anywhere on the whole continent?