Russia in Africa: Resurgent Great Power or Bellicose Pretender?

About

Speaker: Samuel Ramani, Associate Fellow, Royal United Services Institute 

Since 2014, Russia has re-emerged as a great power in Africa. Russia has signed mining and energy contracts with African countries, exploited anti-Western sentiments in Africa, and used sinister tactics, such as election interference and private military contractor deployments, to bolster its influence. Russia's geopolitical position in Africa has weathered the storm of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as many African countries refuse to condemn the war and Moscow's informal military presence in Libya, Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic remains intact.

This seminar will examine the foundations of Russia's current influence in Africa and the threat that the Kremlin poses to Western interests on the continent. While Russia's malign activities in Africa have gained widespread attention relatively recently, the Kremlin is leveraging a toolkit that were developed during the mid-1990s, and its ascendancy in Africa was incremental. The seminar will also shed light on how Russia is perceived in Africa, the domestic agents shaping Russia's Africa policy, how Russia interacts with China in Africa, and whether Moscow's hard-won influence can survive Western sanctions and the Ukraine war. 

Everyone is welcome to join us online via Zoom! Please register in advance for this seminar:
https://harvard.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEpc-GhrzMuEt3IRcXKSRqyc8bqtDZJR_5Z

Contact

For more information, email the International Security Program Assistant at susan_lynch@harvard.edu.