The media, Valeria Verbenina, pointed out - in a report published by the Russian newspaper "Vezglyad" - that the fading of French influence in Africa has become a clear reality after many countries asked the French forces to leave their lands.
Verbinina cited the example of the Central African Republic and Mali, which expelled the French units, and the government of Burkina Faso, which denounced the Military Assistance Treaty concluded in Paris on April 24, 1961, followed in their footsteps.
The writer indicated that, in exchange for the decline of the French role in the region, Russia strengthened its presence there, as the units of the Russian military company "Wagner" replaced the French army, and Russian businessmen obtained the advantages that the French enjoyed.
rescue attempt
She stated that French President Emmanuel Macron visited a number of African countries for the second time in a row during the past six months, against the background of the "public defeat" that France is being exposed to by Africans today.
The writer explained that the failures in the French president's domestic policy are directly linked to the failures at the level of foreign policy.
Verbenina points out that Macron's trip to African countries opens the door to many questions, especially since he said that France has become the perfect scapegoat in Africa, as fingers are pointed at it in the tensions in the region, which is what Russian propaganda exploits.
interests
On the other hand, European researchers believe that the matter is not only related to propaganda, but rather to the pursuit of many powers such as China, Turkey, the United States and Germany to achieve their interests in Africa.
The report believes that Paris' anger at Moscow's actions is justified by many facts, such as the Malian president's expression of his happiness after receiving Russian military equipment, which authorized him to move forward in "solving terrorism problems", as well as the regular visits of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to African countries. and welcome there.
The author, Verbinina, stated that the past year was a great surprise to the West after a number of African countries refrained from condemning Russia, and instead expressed their desire to strengthen cooperation with it, which gave reason to the West and France to announce that "Russian colonialism has established its feet in Africa."
And she considered that the desire to influence regional players, try to win them over to the side of Western society, and take a closer look at the situation in order to conclude potential military contracts, may all be the reason behind Macron's visit to Africa.