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.  

Trump Administration's National Security Strategy and Africa

 The Foreign Policy Research Institute published on 6 January 2026 an analysis titled "The Africa Blind Spot: The US National Security Strategy and the Risks of Retreat" by Christopher Faulkner and Raphael Parens.  

The Trump Administration's National Security Strategy document represents a significant shift in how the United States will approach Africa in the near term.  It reflects a preference for transactionalism, driven by the president's pursuit of the Nobel Peace Prize.  

The limited discussion devoted to Africa (about a half a page) does not inherently reflect a lack of interest in the continent.  Instead, it demonstrates that the administration's interest in Africa will be constrained, selective, and dependent on what Africa can offer in an increasingly competitive world.  This effectively constitutes strategic disengagement.

The authors conclude that navigating between selective engagement and strategic retreat will not likely reduce the pressures that will draw the United States to the continent.  Instead, it risks deferring engagement, ensuring that future interventions, when they become unavoidable, are costlier and less effective.  

A Smarter "America First" Policy for Africa

 Foreign Policy published on 19 May 2025 a commentary titled "The 'America First' Case for U.S. Engagement in Africa" by Curtis Bell and Christopher Faulkner, both at the U.S. Naval War College.

Instead of retreating from Africa, the Trump administration should embrace a smarter form of transactionalism.  The authors argue that US policy toward Africa should refocus around four strategic priorities: supporting resilient and self-sufficient regional organizations; curbing threats to US security at their source; fostering African support for US positions in international institutions; and co-developing a positive economic vision for the continent that promotes economic development and integration while resisting extractive and abusive economic practices of rival global powers.