Throughout history, political violence and protests have displaced millions of African people. Conflict in Africa has rarely been front page news in the U.S., but the security challenges facing civilians are dire and worsening.
“The Sahel region of Africa is on fire right now,” said Eric Schmitt, senior writer covering terrorism and national security for the New York Times and three-time Pulitzer Prize winner. The Sahel region is the transition zone between the Sahara of the north and the Sudanian Savanna to the south.
The Schar School of Policy and Government’s Center for Security Policy Studies welcomed Schmitt, assistant professor of international security Philip Martin, and an audience of more than 30 students and faculty on Friday, October 18 in Arlington’s Van Metre Hall.
“Conflict in Africa is mainly related to extremist or jihadist groups testing established governments, ethnic groups competing for resources or power, and political or citizen protests of governments seen as corrupt or inefficient,” said Martin in his opening remarks.
Martin expanded on the presence of extremist groups stating that post-colonialist regimes are seen as corrupt, giving rise to terrorist ideologies.
“Conflict in the Sahel is increasing,” said Schmitt. “The United States Africa Command [Africom] has been instructed to decrease their forces from 1,200 to 300 troops” in the region.
Schmitt spent time traveling through the Sahel with Africom during Flintlock 2019, a military exercise involving U.S. and European Union special forces.
“The United States is taking a more hands-off approach and pushing other countries to get involved,” said Schmitt. “However, the French already have 4,500 troops on the ground in the Sahel. In fact, Russian mercenaries are commonly hired by African governments to squash extremist groups as seen recently in Mozambique.”
“A big problem is building security forces that will stay loyal to leaders,” said Martin. “While Chad has the largest army in the Sahel, there is no regional hegemon.”
Both experts agreed that a heavy-handed military approach is not the answer to solving conflict in Africa. However, they argued that the presence of military to give countries a peaceful space and enough time to build a solid foundation may yield positive results.