The New Cold War: Competing for African Allies and the Place of Democracy Promotion

At the time of Washington’s Democracy Summit of 2021, it appeared that a major critical re-evaluation of all three African regimes, and Western support to them, was underway. This chapter explores how the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and the West’s search for anti-Russian allies in Africa, meant Western donor countries were forced to reassess their willingness to risk losing their favoured African partners by exerting pressure on them because of their authoritarianism and violations of international law. It tracks the diplomatic efforts of the US Secretary of State and his Russian counterpart and their repeated visits to Africa as they competed for votes in the UN. It examines American attempts to repair bridges with Ethiopia and Rwanda and the responses of Addis Ababa and Kigali to these overtures. A distinction is drawn between these efforts and the less successful attempts to bring Kampala onside. In the context of a new Cold War, the current place of democracy promotion in the engagement of Washington and other donor countries such as the UK with these regimes is examined. In addition, recent criticisms of the role of Western aid in supporting the authoritarian regimes made by leading opposition figures in Rwanda and Uganda are highlighted.