The inaugural Russia-Africa Summit will take place on Wednesday and Thursday of this week in the Olympic city of Sochi near the Black Sea. Some 50 heads of state have been invited to what many regard as Russia’s formal re-entry into African geopolitics.

U.S. officials have become increasingly vocal with their concern over the past few years about both Russia and China’s growing influence in Africa. Who can forget former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s memorable “Prosper Africa” speech at the Heritage Foundation where he spoke menacingly of the need to challenge Russia and China on the continent? Similarly, the Pentagon has also provided a constant reminder for the need to be vigilant against the threat, in their view, posed by Beijing and Moscow’s deeper economic, political and military engagement across Africa.