US Response to Russia's Engagement in Africa's Sahel Region

 Eurasia Review published on 9 November 2026 a commentary titled "The Head of US Africa Command Says That the Sahel Is 'Putin's Purse'" by Daniel Volman.

General Dagvin Anderson, the head of US Africa Command, recently commented that Africa's Sahel region has become Putin's purse because Russia is extracting gold, uranium and lithium from the countries where the Africa Corps is engaged.  US Africa Command is responding by establishing counterterrorism partnerships with several countries in North and West Africa.  

UAE Role in Sudan Conflict

 The New York Times posted on 5 November 2026 an article titled "UAE Sent 'Desert Wolves' to Help Sudanese Militia Accused of Genocide" by Declan Walsh.

The article details UAE support for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan's civil war.  It includes access to a confidential report submitted to the UN Security Council last month detailing how an Emirati security company with close ties to the UAE government moved Columbian mercenaries into Sudan through territory controlled by Emirati proxies in Libya and Somalia.  

Violence at Chinese Mine in Zimbabwe

 Nehanda Radio posted on 4 November 2026 an article titled "One Dead, Three Injured as Five Excavators Burn at Shurugwi Mine Linked to Mnangagwa's Son."

One person died and three others were injured during violent clashes on 2 November between artisanal miners and security personnel at a Chinese-owned mine in Zimbabwe.  The son of Zimbabwe's president is a partner with Chinese investors in the mine.

China's Zero Tariff Policy Will Not Solve Ghana's Export Challenges

 Discovery Alert posted on 18 October 2026 an article titled "Ghana's Export Strategy Needs More than China's Zero Tariffs" by Muflih Hidayat.

China's recent zero tariff policy for African countries removes only a price barrier.  Rules of origin, standards, processing capacity, and financing will limit the ability of Ghana to export substantially more goods to China.

Limits of China's Model in Mali

 Pakistan's Friday Times published on 25 September 2026 an article titled "Mali's 2026 Collapse and the Limits of China's Peace-Through-Investment Model" by Ali Asfand Salyana.

China dominates Mali's gold and lithium sectors and even expanded operations in the face of increasing jihadi attacks on government forces.  Now the jihadis are targeting Chinese interests, raising doubts about its investment and trade model in the country.

UK Sanctions Illicit Gold Networks Fueling Sudan's War

 The UK government published on 16 July 2026 a press release titled "UK Sanctions Illicit Gold Networks Fueling Sudan's War Amid Crisis around El Obeid."

The UK government announced sanctions targeting the conflict gold trade in Sudan, procurement networks, and financial facilitators that are fueling the civil war in Sudan.  The sanctions focus primarily on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and UAE-based companies, but they include the Sudan Armed Forces and one Hong Kong-based company.  

China's New Gold Strategy Runs Through Africa

 TrendsNAfrica published on 1 July 2026 an article titled "China's New Gold Strategy Runs Through Africa:  How Beijing Is Rewriting the Global Bullion Market."

Beijing is quietly reshaping the mechanics of the international gold trade.  Its strategy involves dismantling speculative domestic paper-gold trading while building an international ecosystem centered on physical bullion, yuan-based settlements, and African mineral wealth.

About 40 percent of the world's remaining underground gold reserves are located in Africa.  China is reducing its holdings of US Treasury securities and replacing them with gold purchases, especially in Africa.  

Additional Sanctions on Sudanese Companies and Individuals

 Foreign Policy posted on 15 July 2026 an article titled "Sudan Faces New Sanctions as Evidence of Atrocities Mounts" by Nosmot Gbadamosi.

The EU and the US have expanded sanctions on individuals and companies that have aided the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and/or the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF).  In the meantime, global efforts to end the war have largely stalled.

Comment:  Numerous sanctions in recent years on the RSF and the SAF have had no impact on bringing this civil war to an end.  

Video Critical of Russia's Engagement in Mali

 Warfronts posted on 6 July 2026 a 14-minute video titled "This Country Trusted Russia--Then It All Fell Apart" with Simon Whistler.

This is a highly critical account of Russia's Wagner Group and Africa Corps engagement with the Mali military in an effort to prop up the military government.  

Chinese Finance and Critical Mineral Access in Africa

 Boston University's Global Development Policy Center published in June 2026 a paper titled "Development Quid Pro Quo: Chinese Finance and Critical Mineral Access in Africa" by Congyi Dai.

The paper explores whether China's development finance agenda is motivated by its global quest for natural resources, facilitating mine acquisitions in Africa.  It uses four data sources to examine whether Chinese development finance is tied to the pursuit of critical minerals.

The paper concludes that minerals needed for clean energy technologies such as copper, cobalt, nickel, and platinum group metals are associated with Chinese loan commitments to recipient countries.  Specifically, uranium is the mineral most strongly linked to Chinese development projects, particularly those including a substantial grant component and highly concessional repayment terms.

Sudan: A Resource War Fought by Proxy?

The New York Times published on 15 April 2026 a guest essay titled "I have Watched the Catastrophe of My Country Be Reduced to Nothing" by Mohammed Ahmed. 

The author takes issue with those who call what is happening in Sudan a "civil war."  He argues it is "a resource war fought by proxy, playing out against the world's indifference."  About the only thing sustaining Sudan today is communal mobilization or self-help by ordinary Sudanese.  

Partition Is Not the Answer to the Sudan Conflict

 Foreign Affairs published on 8 April 2026 an article titled "Don't Partition Sudan Again: Splitting It Didn't Work in the Past and Won't Work Now" by Francis M. Deng and Ahmed Kodouda.

Both the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) insist they are fighting to preserve a unified Sudan, but the longer the current geographical division persists, the harder it will be to put the country together again.  

The 2011 independence of South Sudan offers a cautionary tale.  Any effort to formalize the split between the SAF and RSF-controlled parts of Sudan would not resolve the conflict's root causes.  Another partition of Sudan would also destabilize its neighbors.    

Can Ethiopia's Strong Growth Rate Continue?

 Foreign Policy published on 18 February 2026 an article titled "What's Behind Ethiopia's Double Digit Growth: And Can Addis Ababa's Boon Last?" by Nosmot Gdabamosi. 

Ethiopia's impressive growth rate is being driven by floating the exchange rate for its currency, the birr, and strong exports of coffee and gold.  But high debt and involvement in Sudan's civil war could reverse the current positive numbers.   

Illegal Chinese Mining in Nigeria Results in Dustup with US

 China-Africa Security Radar published on 16 February 2026 an analysis titled "Beijing Rejects U.S. Allegations of Financing Terror in Nigeria's Illegal Mining Sector--The Reality Is More Complex."

Prominent Republican members of the US Congress have sponsored a bill that alleges Chinese individuals and companies involved in illegal mining pay "protection money" to Fulani militias and other armed groups to secure access to lithium and gold deposits.  The bill links these militias to terrorist violence that has impacted Nigerian Christian communities.

The Chinese embassy in Abuja issued a strongly worded statement refuting allegations that Chinese nationals are funding militant groups to gain access to minerals in Nigeria's Middle Belt and northwestern region.  

China-Africa Security Radar concludes that it is generally agreed there is illegal Chinese mining in Nigeria, but the culprits are pragmatically paying "rent" to armed groups to access the minerals.

Major Study of Africa's Strategic Minerals

 The Lagos-based African Finance Corporation recently posted its "Compendium of Africa's Strategic Minerals 2026."

This is a major study of Africa's critical minerals, industrial minerals, uranium, and rare earths.  It also noted that China controls about 90 percent of global manganese refining, approximately 90 percent of rare earth separation and refining, and dominates battery-grade graphite processing.    

African Countries Have More Policy Options: West, China, Russia, Gulf States

 Politics Today published on 23 January 2026 an article titled "Africa's Quiet Power Shift: From Russian Gold Deals to China's Training Push" by Goktug Caliskan, International University of Rabat.  

The author concluded the question among African governments is no longer whether Russia's Africa Corps, China's training offensive, Trump's transactional policy or Europe's climate money is most attractive.  The question is how African governments use these choices to maneuver and quietly rewrite the rules.  Africa is learning to say yes, no, or not yet--and to make everyone wait.  

US-China Competition for Africa's Critical Minerals

 Business Insider Africa posted on 26 January 2026 an article titled "US-China Mineral Race Heats Up as Africa's Top Mining Nations Head to Washington" by Solomon Ekanem.

US officials are accelerating direct engagement in the mining sector of African governments and promoting investment-led partnerships with American companies.  

Waging Peace in Ethiopia's Tigray Region

 Ethiopia Insight published on 19 November 2025 a commentary titled "Waging Peace in Tigray, a Land Haunted by War" by Mohammedawel Hagos, Worabe University.

As the Pretoria Agreement unravels, the path forward in Tigray Region is threatened not just by the tension but by a political culture still in the grip of a stifling party-state and collective trauma.  The author calls for internal Tigrayan reconciliation as the only route to a peaceful future.  

The West Just Watches Genocide in Sudan's Darfur Region

 Newsweek published on 18 November 2025 a commentary titled "Sudan's Genocide Is Happening in Plain Sight--and the West Is Enabling It" by Faisal Kutty, Canadian journalist.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are openly committing genocide in Sudan's Darfur Region.  Western governments denounce the killings but support the UAE, which is assisting the RSF.

Pressure Mounts on UAE to End Support for Sudan's RSF

 The Washington Post published on 15 November 2025 an article titled "UAE Faces Growing Outrage over Support for Paramilitary in Sudan" by Tobi Raji.

Advocacy groups, members of the US Congress, and regional experts are stepping up their criticism of the UAE for supporting the genocidal activities of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan.  The UAE continues to deny its support for the RSF as evidence to the contrary mounts.