Grand Prix d’Afrique. Russian and French Policy in Equatorial Africa on the Example of the Republic of Congo: From Efficiency to Effectiveness

In this study, using the specific example of French and Russian policy in the Republic of Congo, an attempt is made to determine the possibility of using quantitative methods to qualitatively analyse the efficiency and effectiveness of a state’s foreign policy. It seems that efficiency assessment is necessary and useful for short-term periods, but it does not provide an opportunity to predict the development of the situation in the long term. Both the USSR/Russian Federation and France spent a lot of material resources and political efforts in order to come to a certain parity in favour of the third party. On the other hand, the methodology for assessing the long-term effectiveness of foreign policy in remote regions cannot be reduced to numerical outputs. The choice of evaluation criteria depends on the goal set. Moreover, increasing political and economic influence is not a zero-sum game in the modern world. The role of the object of influence (the Republic of Congo) in pursuing its own goals is qualitatively growing.