the establishment of the Africa Command has sparked opposition from the international community, especially African countries. Most countries, including some nations that have close relations with the United States, have made it clear that they would not welcome U.S. soldiers. France, which considers Africa as part of its sphere of interests, has also showed deep concern.

Where to locate the Africa Command is the most difficult problem at present. U.S. officials held discussions with a number of African countries this year, but they have not yet decided on a location. Algeria, Libya, Tunisia and Nigeria have said they will not house the command within their borders. It was reported that Morocco agreed to host the Africa Command in its southern Tan-Tan region. However, the Moroccan Government soon denied the report. To date, only Sao Tome and Principe, an island country in the Gulf of Guinea, has offered to host the U.S. Africa Command.

Currently, it is still difficult to forecast where the Africa Command will be based. However, according to the United States' strategic objectives in Africa, it will establish "forward operating sites" in Africa's strategic centers, such as East Africa, North Africa and the Gulf of Guinea, to form a military network covering the entire African Continent. Whether the United States will keep a low profile, as it does now, is questionable. The United States' poor image in Africa is largely responsible for this strong resistance.

U.S.-Africa relations began with the trade of black slaves. The United States started to expand into Africa in 1821 when it established the first colonial outpost on the continent. During the Cold War, the United States offered support to its African allies, including regimes that practiced racial segregation and dictatorship, to contain the Soviet Union's influence in Africa.

Uncertain future

The United States has met fierce resistance since it decided to establish the Africa Command. Whether the Africa Command can operate smoothly, to steer the development of the strategic situation in Africa in a direction the United States wants, mainly hinges on the U.S. forces' respect for the freedom of African countries and people.

The United States has tried to dilute power politics and military intervention involved in setting up the Africa Command by incorporating personnel from civilian government departments, making it different from other U.S. commands. Despite this, Africa and the world at large are still suspicious of its motives. The U.S. military presence and operations in foreign countries have brought serious trouble for local residents. American servicemen in Japan and South Korea have committed sexually violent crimes time and again. In Iraq, they go as far as killing innocent civilians.

If the U.S. troops do not become more disciplined, they will fuel Africa's internal conflicts and political turmoil, and the United States will end up with another failure. It will not only spawn more terrorism, but also plunge the African people into disastrous chaos and wars. Its efforts may backfire, too, miring the United States in the morass of Africa, just as they have in Iraq.

And now take a look at the U.S. Africa Command's implications on China's interests in Africa. China and the United States can choose to cooperate, compete or be embroiled in confrontation with each other in Africa. The establishment of the Africa Command is the prelude to deeper American involvement in Africa's affairs. China stands for concerted international efforts to support Africa's economic development and national reconciliation. At the same time, it opposes power politics that interferes in Africa's internal affairs. If they uphold the principles of equal consultation and mutually beneficial cooperation, both China and United States will make joint contributions to Africa's peace and development.

China Summons U.S. Ambassador to Protest Award to Dalai Lama Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi summoned U.S. Ambassador to China, Clark Randt, on October 18 to express strong protest on behalf of the Chinese Government for the Capitol's awarding to the Dalai Lama, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Liu Jianchao said. The move of the United States is wanton interference in China's internal affairs, has hurt the feelings of the Chinese people and gravely undermined its relations with China, Liu told a press briefing that day. Tibet is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory, Liu said, adding that the Tibet issue is purely China's internal affairs. China resolutely opposes any country or any people to make use of the Dalai Lama issue to interfere in its domestic affairs, he said. "The words and deeds of the Dalai Lama in the past decades show he is a political refugee engaged in secessionist activities in the camouflage of religion," Liu said. The so-called U.S. congressional award to the Dalai Lama and the meetings of U.S. leaders with him "have severely trampled on the norms of international relations and violated the U.S. Government's reiterated position on the Tibet issue," Liu said. "We express our strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition toward this," he said. The Chinese people's determination to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity is unswerving and any attempt to interfere in China's internal affairs using the Dalai problem is doomed to fail, Liu said. Source: Xinhua News Agency

The author is an assistant research fellow at the Institute for Strategy Study, National Defense University of the People’s Liberation Army of China