Türkiye became a strategic partner of the African Union in 2008 (Anatolia - Archive)

The visit of Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zein to Turkey at the beginning of this February in response to an invitation from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shed light on Turkey's role in Africa and its quest for expansion and influence through economic and military cooperation.

For two decades, Turkey has been working to expand its presence in the African continent, which is considered a suitable climate for investment, as it possesses, according to economic estimates, about 65% of global resources that have not been exploited.

After the wave of coups in the Sahel that began in 2020 in Mali, and the decline of French influence in West Africa, Ankara increased its efforts, through channels of armament and economic cooperation, to be a present partner in the region that is witnessing a competition between the forces of global influence and influence.

Diplomatic relations

Turkish diplomacy began implementing a strategy of rapprochement with the African continent by expanding relations and increasing diplomatic presence. The number of Turkish embassies in Africa jumped from 12 embassies in 2002 to 44 embassies and consulates in 2022. African embassies and diplomatic representations accredited in Turkey also increased from 10 embassies in 2008. , to 37 embassies in 2021.

Turkey ranks fourth among the most represented countries on the African continent, after the United States, China and France.

According to statements by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, relations with African countries are among the main goals of Turkish foreign policy.

The interest in developing these relations dates back to the year 2005, when Ankara became an observer member of the African Union, and in the same year it announced a new map entitled “Openness to Africa.”

The African-Turkish Partnership Summit in Istanbul in 2021 (Anatolia-Archive)

Partnership with Africa

In the context of strengthening these relations, Turkey became a strategic partner of the African Union in 2008, and in the same year it held the first Turkish-African partnership summit in Istanbul. The most important slogans of the conference were “common future,” “cooperation,” and “solidarity” among the parties participating in it.

Ankara has become a non-regional member of the African Development Bank, participating in development financing and loans.

In 2014, the African-Turkish Partnership Summit was held in Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea, during which many common issues were signed, and a strategy for joint action between the years 2015-2019 was developed.

In the period between 2008 and 2023, the Turkish President visited 30 African countries and directed investments towards the region.

Investments and trade

Since the beginning of the third millennium, Turkey has worked to direct commercial companies towards Africa, which has a huge consumer market and is inhabited by more than 1.3 billion people.

In the context of the economic partnership, the volume of trade exchange between Turkey and Africa moved from $3 billion in 2003 to $26 billion in 2021.

Ankara imports 90% of its oil and gas needs, worth $42 billion annually, and has recently sought to obtain gas at preferential prices from the African region, which possesses 10% of the world's oil reserves.

Nigerian laurel constitutes 90% of the country's exports to Turkey, and Algeria is considered the fourth exporter of liquefied laurel to Ankara. In Ethiopia, 200 Turkish companies operate in various vital sectors and employ 30,000 Ethiopian citizens.

Turkey is classified as the second largest investor in Ethiopia after China, as trade exchange with it reached $650 million in 2022.

The volume of projects undertaken by Turkish contracting companies throughout Africa increased to $71.1 billion in 2021, and sub-Saharan African countries account for about $19.5 billion of these contracting and works.

Ankara has 37 military offices in the African continent (Reuters)

Military presence

After Turkey strengthened its commercial and investment presence in the region, it sought to extend its military influence within Africa and conduct joint exercises with the armies of the region.

This resulted in the signing of security agreements with Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania to train security forces in these countries to combat armed groups and acts of piracy. Turkey also worked to open new markets for Turkish military industries.

Ankara has 37 military offices on the African continent, and in 2021 it increased its military exports to Africa, as its arms sales rose from $41 million to $328 million.

The Turkish Armed Forces contribute to training for the Somali army, built a training center for it and provided it with equipment and armored vehicles, in addition to other grants that included vehicles and ambulances.

In the year 2021, the Turkish President announced at the time that his country would remain standing by the Ethiopian government and support it by all means.

During his visit to Mauritania in 2018, the Turkish President confirmed that his country was providing support to the Sahel group amounting to about $5 million in order to stand up to armed groups.

The position on coups

With the decline of French influence in West Africa due to military coups whose leaders showed hostility to the former colonizer, Turkey increased its political and military support for those countries.

Ankara stood against the sanctions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Bamako after the military coup in 2020, and its Foreign Minister made an official visit to Mali in the same year.

Last January, the head of the Transitional Military Council in Mali, Colonel Assimi Goita, appeared at the handover ceremony of the Bayraktar drones produced by Turkey.

 Following the handover ceremony, Ahmed Yildiz, Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister in charge of African Affairs, visited Bamako, which he said came to value the tripartite alliance between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, and to provide more support.

On January 17, 2024, the joint ministerial committee between Burkina Faso and Turkey was held under the chairmanship of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Burkinabe counterpart Karamaku Jean Traoré.

The committee signed many agreements that were described as important for the future of the region.

Captain Ibrahim Traore, leader of the ruling military junta in Burkina Faso, said in an interview with the local press, "The European countries prevented us from buying weapons, but Turkey and Russia opened all doors to us."

Niger crisis

With the beginning of the crisis that occurred in Niger due to the coup of July 26, 2023, Turkey stood against the military intervention announced by the ECOWAS group.

The volume of trade exchange between Turkey and Niger has also increased in recent years, rising from $72 million in 2019 to $203 million in 2022.

Within the framework of the "Coalition of Sahel countries" approaching the purchase of Turkish drones, the visit of the Prime Minister of Niger to Ankara came, during which he was briefed on a number of defense industry companies.

Al-Amin Al-Zein visited the ASELSAN Defense and Electronic Industries Company, which he said would contribute to supporting the security of the region through defense cooperation.

Turkey previously signed a military agreement with Niamey in 2021 after the tour of then Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

According to the local press in Niger, Ankara is seeking to establish a Turkish military base in the Agadez region in northern Niger, which has a strategic geographical location, as it is in contact with Chad, Libya and Algeria.

The Agadez province is also considered a center for uranium mines, which the authorities in Niamey seek to control from attacks by rebels and armed movements.

Challenges and obstacles

Turkey's policy towards Africa faces some obstacles and challenges, which are summarized - according to a study published by the Arab Democratic Center - in the spread of religious and ethnic conflicts, and the exacerbation of the scale of armed conflicts and border conflicts, which in African countries affected the ruling political systems and a state of political, social and economic instability appeared in many countries. of countries.

The emergence of armed movements and the increasing African role in the war on "terrorism", which occupied a special place in American strategic thought, will cast a shadow on any Turkish role in the region.

The African continent is witnessing many international challenges and conflicts, and international powers (the United States, Russia, China, Israel, and European countries) are seeking to extend their influence within the continent and create a state of military, economic, and geopolitical competition, which affects the roles of other countries in the region.

In general, the main indicator of Turkey's policy in Africa is heading towards further development according to joint implementation plans announced by the parties during the periodic partnership summits between the two sides.

Turkish-African relations remain an important aspect of Turkish foreign policy, especially in light of the successes Ankara has achieved within the African continent.

Source: Al Jazeera + websites