Presentation Transcript

1. Hot Spots of the Cold War in Africa

2. Context– Post WWII Africa Education Exploitation Demobilized troops
3. In 1945, only FOUR nations belonged to UN (Egypt (1922-1947), South Africa (1910), Liberia (1847), and Ethiopia (never) By 1960, 25 new nations. “Year of Africa” By 1984, 45 nations. By 2011, 52 nations. (not including S. Sudan or Western Sahara) Decolonization Timeline
4. Rise of African Nationalism Pan-Africanism & Neo-colonialism Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana) “ The result of neo-colonialism is that foreign capital is used for the exploitation rather than for the development of the less developed parts of the world. Investment under neo-colonialism increases rather than decreases the gap between the rich and the poor countries of the world. The struggle against neo-colonialism is not aimed at excluding the capital of the developed world from operating in less developed countries. It is aimed at preventing the financial power of the developed countries being used in such a way as to impoverish the less developed.”
5. Eight States African Conference (1958) “We want to come together to link ourselves in a chain so that no other nation can pull one of us without having to cope with the rest of us.” Nkrumah (and Nasser).
6. Two visions of Africa’s Future- 1961 Casablanca Group (morocco, Ghana, Egypt, Mali, Guinea) NON-ALIGNMENT IN COLD WAR (protested neo-colonialism) Wanted single African government Monrovia group (19--Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Madagascar, and others) Supported continued economic and political ties with former colonial rulers Doubted viability of unity and were hesitant to share power with other rulers. Much of former Francophone Africa, including Senghor of Senegal.
7. Desire to prevent territorial conflicts between each other Tempted extra-continental powers to exploit instability for economic gain. Eventual political unification of entire continent (or at least military cooperation) Wanted to remove pretext for foreign interference in Africa’s internal affairs Necessity for neutrality in the Cold war Principle of non-alignment OAU Charter (1963 -2002) later the AU
8. Cold War Pawns? Forestallment of proxy violence though local discourse was defined by these threats. Outbreak of violence in 1970’s extended Cold War– Soviet union and US courted clients and employed proxies. Several 100 Soviet military advisers, 41,000 Cuban troops operated in a dozen countries by the 1970’s.
9. Egypt (1922-1947)
10. Ghana (1957) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqlZUnDsdWE
11. Guinea (1958) NON! SekouToure rejected French community “Poverty in liberty to riches in slavery” France removed government documents and destroyed French infrastructure for com munication and transport. Played off aid and access between US and USSR for decades (South Africa, Mao, Cuban Missile Crisis, Angola)
12. Africa (Lines 18-30)I am AfricaThe Continent of tomorrow!Neo-colonialismFerocious as subtleWishes to keep in shackles Both my Mind and my Wealth.Of the evils plaguing me still,Most debasing is irresponsibilityMy Peoples, henceforthHeroic resistants,Have joined the battle:Destroying in order to renew.
13. Ethiopia (never col. & Somalia (1960) Ethiopia Civil War 1974-1991 Ethiopia under the Derg became the Socialist bloc’s closest ally in Africa, and became one of the best-armed nations of the region as a result of massive military aid chiefly from the Soviet Union, GDR, Cuba and North Korea. Most industries and private urban real-estate holdings were nationalized by the Derg in 1975. The Derg satisfied its main slogan of “Land to the Tiller” by redistributing land once belonging to landlords to the peasant tilling the land. BUT…
14. Ogaden WAR-1977 (Somalia vs Ethiopia) USSR switched from supplying aid to Somalia to supporting Ethiopia (as well as Cuban soldiers). The US then switched to supporting Somalia (Somali bases) but so did China!
15. Angola (1975) Portuguese rule Angola (oil, strategic location, mineral resources) 1975-76 civil war began--MPLA (oil) vs UNITA (diamonds) Soviet and Cuban aid But MNC Economic interests
16. Libya (1951) Qaddafi toppled pro-Western monarchy in 1969 Nationalized American oil properties Closed down American and British air bases Received substantial Soviet military and economic assistance Supported Moscow’s foreign policy Began to interfere in internal affairs in Chad, Sudan, Somalia, and Liberia.
17. Tanzania Julius Nyerere (mwalimu) Rejected Western Capitalism and Soviet-style communism. Self Help policy– African socialism Keep country out of date “War against poverty” could use “nationalist energy” Build national identity Built on notions of African communalism and kinship
18. Soviet Motivation American motivation Desire to expand influence in region (and cut off western access to strategic minerals like copper, titanium and chromium. Aided by newly independent states. Although supportive of decolonization, needed minerals to make jet and rocket engines, feared socialist rhetoric of African leaders, and supported NATO allies (Portugal). Settler states in Central and southern Africa (South Africa, Rhodesia, and Portugal (Guinea Bissau .Cape Verde, Angola, Mozambique) “the Job of Decolonization is not done until All of Africa is free.” Nkrume