November 7, 2007:
Liberia has
expressed an interest in hosting the headquarters for new U.S. "Africa Command"
(AFRICOM). Previously, all African nations had refused to allow AFRICOM
headquarters to be located on their territory. Many African nations are leery
about getting too involved with AFRICOM. There is fear of terrorist attacks on
any AFRICOM facilities in their territory, and some African nations, at least
those run by dictators, don't want more Americans, and their democratic ideas,
upsetting the status quo. And then there is China, which is hostile to AFRICOM
on general principles, because China is making major economic and diplomatic
investments in Africa.
AFRICOM is similar in
organization to other commands (Central, for the Middle East, and South, for
Latin America, etc). AFRICOM will coordinate all American military operations
in Africa. Before, those operations were split between two commands (the one
covering Europe and the one covering Latin America). The establishment of
AFRICOM means more money for counter-terror operations in Africa, and more long
range projects.
One thing most African nations
do want from AFRICOM are military and counter-terrorism trainers. The problem
with this is that, the people so trained are often then employed as enforcers
for the local dictator. Even providing training for peacekeepers can backfire,
for those peacekeeping skills can also be used to pacify your own people.
This lack of cooperation is
troublesome, although not unexpected. Many of the requests for basing rights
come with large financial incentives (rent payments, jobs for locals), and this
is something that has attracted Liberia. The United States is the major
provider of foreign aid to Africa, and has been for some time. The mass media
has been painting the U.S. as Mr Evil for the last five years, especially in
nations with large Moslem populations. But eventually, reality trumps
propaganda.
Liberia is recovering from
over a decade of civil war. The country is broke and its infrastructure is in
ruins. Several hundred, or even thousand, well paid American soldiers and
civilians, would do wonders for the economy. But another unspoken reason to
welcome AFRICOM is that it would give pause to any future rebel group, or
military commanders contemplating a coup. With AFRICOM would come an American
airbase, that could quickly bring in additional troops to protect U.S.
citizens, and a democratically elected government threatened by local thugs.
Moreover, AFRICOM personnel would be most familiar with the situation in
Liberia, and would give the elected government another source of information
about local threats.
