Russia and the African “awakening”: perspectives for the fight against neocolonialism in the 21st century

The deployment of a Russian military base in the CAR, arms baron Jean-Yves Drian, imperial decolonization and the future African conquest of Europe-these and other topics were discussed by diplomats and experts in Moscow.

On June 27, the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation hosted a conference entitled “Russia and the African 'Awakening': perspectives on the struggle against neocolonialism in the 21st century”. The event was organized by the Public Chamber, the International Eurasian Movement and the People's Friendship University of Russia. The international forum “Russia-Africa: what next?” on the basis of the MGIMO of the MFA of Russia provided support.

The conference was attended by Russian and African officials and experts: Leon Dodonu-Punagaza, Ambassador of the Central African Republic (CAR) to the Russian Federation; Mikhail Grigoriev, Director of the Noncommercial Foundation for Research of Problems of Democracy, Member of the Public Chamber (Russia); Dmitry Degterev, candidate in political science, analyst of the International Eurasian Movement (Russia); Alexey Bovdunov, PhD in history, professor of the Department of Theory and History of International Relations of PFUR (Russia); Igor Nigusie Kasset, PhD in history, professor of the Department of Theory and History of International Relations of PFUR (Russia); I. Tkachenko. V., executive secretary of the Program Committee of the Forum “Russia-Africa: what next?” based on the MGIMO of the MFA of Russia; Umar Sidibe, postgraduate student at the People's Friendship University of Russia, member of the Mali Writers' Union (Mali); Ivkina N.V. candidate in historical sciences, assistant professor in the Department of Theory and History of International Relations of the PFUR (Russia); Platonova Daria, political observer of the International Eurasian Movement (Russia).

Maxim Grigoriev, member of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, opened the conference. In his speech he emphasized that Russia's approach to cooperation with Africa is fundamentally different from that of the West: “The USSR was a friend of Africa, it helped win its independence. The Russian Federation, as the successor to the USSR, does not have the neocolonial past of colonial countries. We help legitimate authorities to ensure security, we do not ask to change ideology, religion, tradition, as Western countries do.”

CAR Ambassador to Russia Dodonu-Punagaza Leon began his speech by proposing to honor Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine with a minute's silence. He expressed gratitude for Russia's support for the CAR. In 2021, bandit groups, backed by France, tried to seize power but were stopped by an army trained by Russian specialists: “Russia listened to the cries and cries of a people under pressure from international forces, complicit with former colonialists. Russia intervened, drying our tears like a liberator”, Dodon-Punagaza Leon said. At these words, the ambassador wept.

The ambassador stressed that relations between the two countries are developing dynamically, the CAR fully supports Russia's Special Military Operation (SWO) in Ukraine, has recognized the DNR and LNR, and is open to economic and military cooperation.

“That is why I ask and will continue to ask for a Russian military base in the CAR”, the ambassador said.

In addition, he said the CAR's example has encouraged other countries in the region to look to Russia as an alternative to France and the United States: “Some African States have followed the CAR's example, such as Mali, whose determination and courage I appreciate”, Dodonu-Punagaza Leon stressed.

Despite the formal declaration of independence by most African countries in the past century, the continent is still struggling to free itself from the control of its former colonizers and the global hegemon, the United States. Over the past year, the Dark Continent has been crisscrossed by large-scale demonstrations against France and the United States. A growing number of countries such as Mali, Central African Republic, Republic of Chad, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger are demanding the liberation of the entire continent from the neocolonialist occupying power. The major criticism is directed at France.

“What is called neocolonialism in the case of France's relations with its former colonies, for example, rests on five main pillars. These are agreements and interactions in the political, economic, monetary, cultural and military fields”, Umar Sidibé, a member of the Mali Writers Union, said for his part. He pointed out that France has imposed unequal relations on West African countries. For example, “at the economic level, there are formal agreements that give France privileged access to African resources and call for 'limited or banned exports to other countries,' and these are unfair conditions”.

According to African experts, it is essential that Africa receive help from Russia, an actor that has never been a colonial power.

This idea was developed by Alexander Bovdunov, a political science candidate and representative of the International Eurasian Movement. He noted that the West is trying to accuse Russia of colonialism in order to fight it. The goal is to try to win back the sympathy of Africans. However, these accusations are scientifically untenable.

“Declaring Russia -- which the West itself has always declared a non-Western and "barbaric" country -- of "colonialism" is the same as declaring the Aztec state, Ancient Rome, Byzantium, Qajar Persia, the Mughal Empire, China and Ethiopia a colonial empire”, Bovdunov pointed out. According to the expert, Western colonialism was and remains a form of global expansion of the Western world's economy, culture and ideology, “which can be ended only by eliminating the West”. Under the slogan of fighting “empire”, it pursues imperialist policies and uses separatist forces to dismantle continental projects, both in Russia (Ukraine) and Africa (support for separatists in Mali and Ethiopia).

The expert pointed out the structural similarities between Pan-Africanism and Russian Eurasianism:

• Its emergence among European-educated intellectuals in exile, who nevertheless made a choice not for Europe, but for their own civilization;
• The pathos of anticolonialism;
• Transition to a systematic critique of modernity and the Western European Enlightenment;
• The idea of continental integration;
• Imperialist basis - defending traditional empires and states, their historical experience, against colonial pseudo-imperialism and at the same time trying not to recreate the old imperial forms, but to propose new ones - on a fairer and more equitable basis in their civilizational zones;
• Continental integration is no longer an ideology, but an urgent necessity in an emerging multipolar world that demonstrates the fragility of the structures of globalization, a challenge to autarky.

For her part, Daria Platonova, political observer of the International Eurasianist Movement, stressed that African countries have entered the “third phase of decolonization”, a deep decolonization. Its goal is to overcome “the complete dependence of African societies in economy, culture, technology, ideology, security on Europe, on the former metropolises”.

“Russia, which has always supported a multipolar world, is interested in providing as much assistance as possible in this third phase. Russia supports the ideas of pan-African unity - it supports the strengthening and defense of African identity and is ready to support opposition to new forms of colonization in the form of globalization, economic exploitation and cultural hegemony”, Platonova stressed.

Denis Degterev, Ph.D., a political scientist and head of the Department of History and Theory of International Relations at PFUR, also argued that Russia should more actively support pan-Africanist trends. In his view, Russia and Africa must now fight in unison to restore sovereignty. In his presentation, he examined the mechanisms of Western control over Africa through the prism of “structural power” theory: the simultaneous control of Western institutions over the spheres of security, finance and credit, production and knowledge. According to him, “France acts as a sub-empire of the collective West” in its former colonies, while Britain implements a system of “indirect control”, benefiting from U.S. security support. Most serious and difficult, in his view, is the control of the EU: “This is essentially the practice of collective neocolonialism”, believes Degterev, “The system of trade agreements with the EU is what preserves the center-periphery relationship”.

According to Alexandre Artamonov, Ph.D. candidate in social sciences at the Catholic Institute of France, “The Russian worldview is shared by Africans, shared especially by the fact that good must have power”. According to him, there is serious potential for security cooperation between Russia and Africa, including in countries traditionally considered strongholds of French hegemony, Chad and Niger.

The Russian expert noted that the old security techniques of colonial powers to contain the continent's development no longer work. “Africa will be forced to come to terms with itself; the time of the African continent has come. Those who have not understood this today have lost their future”, Artamonov stressed. As an example of the colonists' desperate situation, he cited the French General Staff's failed attempt to shift responsibility for the mass grave discovered near the former French base onto Mali and Russian military advisers. However, Malian authorities accuse the French of war crimes.

French-Lebanese journalist Léo Nicolien said that the policy of neocolonialism in Africa was and is wrong and serves the interests not of the French people but of narrow elite groups. In particular, they were the ones who organized France's invasion of Mali in 2013 under the pretext of fighting terrorism, but the real objectives were other.

In Mali, he said, “we are not talking about terrorists and jihadists, but about mercenaries armed and paid by Jean-Yves Drian (French defense and foreign ministers from 2012 to 2017 and 2017 to 2022, respectively), who are sellers of death. These arms sales are not under the control of the French National Assembly. The intervention in Mali by François Hollande, his government and all the governments that followed him had the sole purpose of appropriating the wealth of the Malian people”, the expert said.

Nygusiye Kassé V. Mikael, Ph.D. in History and professor in the Department of Theory and History of International Relations at PFUR (Russia, Ethiopia), proposed a different perspective on European-African relations. According to him, the established structure of “neocolonialism of a new kind” leads to the fact that eventually Africa will have to “colonize Europe. Since 2015 there has been an influx of refugees to Europe, including from Africa, but these were people who had the means... But when the influx of a more vibrant and hungry African population arrives, will Europe be able to defend its world?” wonders Nygusie.

Artem Davydov, associate professor in the Department of African Studies at St. Petersburg State University, suggested focusing on the revival of indigenous African languages as a counterweight to the language of the colonizers. Therefore, he argued, Mali could switch from French to Bamboara as its official language.

Conference participants agreed that Russia and Africa have much to offer each other. Our civilizations share the common task of gaining sovereignty from the West and ensuring continental integration. This will enable us to meet the challenges of the time and ensure development and security. Deep cultural, specialized and philosophical dialogue must be combined with mutually beneficial cooperation on security, counterterrorism, food supply to the Dark Continent and creation of independent financial instruments to help de-dollarize and free both Russia and Africa from Western hegemony.

Translation by Costantino Ceoldo