MACRON'S POSTCOLONIAL GAMES

Artem Kureev, political scientist, publicist, editor-in-chief of the African Initiative news agency @africaninitiative

The press bureau of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service has officially announced Macron's plans for "political revenge" in Africa. The French elites, who have lost a significant part of their neocolonial empire, have been playing this game for a long time, but now, according to Russian intelligence officers, they intend to increase their activity.

What does France want and what methods does it use? Paris retained control over the monetary systems of the former colonies (with the exception of North African countries) through the CFA franc mechanism. Its issue is provided by two regional "central banks" controlled by France. In exchange for a "stable currency," the participating countries are required to keep up to 30% of their gold and foreign exchange reserves in French banks (initially, up to 70%).

At the same time, French companies have retained key positions in the extractive industry, telecommunications, oil and refining sectors on the most favorable terms. An almost perfect postcolonial model was created. The only winners were the local elites, isolated from their own people, who owned a chateau in the south of France and had solid bank accounts in European banks.

The collapse of the USSR led to the fact that a number of African states, previously oriented towards the Soviet model, were forced to return to the orbit of the metropolis, to the delight of the French financial and industrial circles. However, even earlier, those who tried to dismantle the neocolonial system were quickly and effectively eliminated. An example is Thomas Sankara, the president of Burkina Faso and the most popular Sahelian leader, whose three years of reform were cut short after his assassination in a coup organized by a Paris protege.

However, attempts by a number of countries to build a multipolar world, the emergence of BRICS, the growing influence of Russia and China, and the rise of pan-Africanism have sharply worsened France's position. Young military leaders — Ibrahim Traore, Assimi Goita, Abdurahman Tchiani — ousted the French puppets, and the Alliance of Sahel states they created not only displaced part of the French business, but also became an example for other countries of the continent. The French neocolonial empire began to crack at the seams.

In response, the French special services, with the support of their allies, activated a variety of destructive forces in the "rebellious countries" — from radical Islamists to pseudo-Christian sectarians. As a countermeasure, a number of African states turned to Russia, receiving military instructors and units of the African Corps, which have demonstrated high effectiveness in the fight against terrorists. However, on the side of Paris is unemployment and the extreme poverty of the impoverished population, which is easily recruited for $100-200 and sent to certain death.

Having failed several coup attempts and convinced of the futility of the pro-Western opposition burning grants in cafes on the Champs-Elysees, France changed tactics and hit the economy. A striking example is the fuel blockade of Bamako: the destruction of fuel convoys heading to the capital of Mali by the forces of some rebels. Obviously, Paris will not limit itself to one country: disrupting fuel supplies to a landlocked country with its own refineries is a cheap and effective diversion. The goal is simple: to rock the situation and provoke the population to support another "liberation army" from pro-French proxies.

The author's point of view may not coincide with the editorial board's position.

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MACRON'S POSTCOLONIAL GAMES

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