State Department Under Secretary for Political Affairs Victoria J. Nuland speaks during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, DC, January 27, 2022. The United States on Thursday urged China to use its influence with Russia to discourage an invasion of Ukraine. Susan Walsh / POOL / AFP
The United States and its allies are increasing pressure on African countries to choose sides in the conflict in Ukraine. U.S. officials are engaging with African journalists in order to sway public discussion about the conflict, while diplomatic pressure continues behind the scenes, notably during Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s North African tour last week.
Victoria Nuland, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs gave an interview to The Africa Report last week. This follows a briefing for the African press on the crisis by her colleague, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee, in early March.
In the interview, Nuland increased pressure on African countries not to weaken anti-Russian sanctions: “What’s most important is that as Russia tries to evade the sanctions that we have put on, that countries in Africa do not become sanctuaries for dirty Russian money, for oligarchs’ ill-gotten gains, for them to stash their airplanes and their yachts,” she said.
She framed solidarity in the conflict as crucial to African economies dependent on Russian and Ukrainian wheat exports. But she paid more attention to its impact on the U.S.-led rules-based international order:
[W]e built this rules-based order together. All the democracies around the world have a stake in a global system, where big, powerful countries cannot just turn their militaries on their neighbor when they feel like conquering their territory. We all have to stand up for the rules that we built that have made us more secure, more free and more prosperous over the last 60-70 years. That’s true for us, it’s also true for most of the countries of Africa.
This explicit pressure to choose sides in the conflict comes as Chinese diplomats are intensifying their own diplomatic campaign premised around the message that small countries shouldn’t be forced to choose sides.
The pressure also didn’t draw much enthusiasm from African commentators, who complained about lukewarm U.S. support on African conflicts and pointed out that Nuland wasn’t bringing much to the table.
Lead the Conversation on China
Subscribe Today to Get Full Access to The China-Global South Project
Monthly
$19.00 / monthly
Cancel Anytime - Renews Monthly
Save 17%
Best Value
Yearly
$228.00
$199.00 / yearly
Renews Yearly
Check Out Everything You'll Get With Your Subscription
The China-Global South Daily Brief delivered to your inbox at 6AM Washington time
Full access to exclusive news and analysis from editors based in the Global South
Students and teachers with a valid .edu email address are eligible for a 50% discount off monthly or yearly subscriptions. Email us to receive a discount code.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo renewed his attacks on China’s presence in Africa last week, triggering a full-throated rebuttal from Beijing in what’s now become an almost routine back-and-forth between these two ...
By Lukas Fiala Horrific images and stories of violence and destruction have reached us from Ukraine this week as Russia’s invasion is rapidly turning into a massive humanitarian crisis. While all eyes are rightfully on ...
CAP took its first wobbly step onto a newish media platform Twitter Spaces on Thursday evening. If you don’t know it, the experience is kind of like an audio-only Zoom call, except everyone ...
The China-Global South Project is passionately independent, non-partisan and does not advocate for any country, company or culture.
News
A carefully curated selection of the day’s most important China-Global South stories. Updated 24 hours a day by human editors. No bots, no algorithms.
Analysis
Diverse, often unconventional insights from scholars, analysts, journalists and a variety of stakeholders in the China-Global South discourse.
Networking
A unique professional network of China-Africa scholars, analysts, journalists and other practioners from around the world.
We use cookies on our website to remember your login status and manage your subscription access. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.