Don't Hold the African Crisis Response Force Hostage to Unrealistic Demands

The exigencies of future US involvement in African crises were deemed too costly politically and financially

The death of 18 US Army Rangers in Somalia in 1992 and the spectacle of a dead US soldier being dragged through the streets of Mogadishu signalled a watershed in America`s thinking on peacekeeping in Africa. Notwithstanding a long history of involvement in African conflict resolution, ranging from Katanga in the early 1960s through to the Namibian independence in 1989, the exigencies of future US involvement in African crises were deemed too costly in both political and financial terms. Since the US withdrawal from Somalia, US proposals regarding involvement in African peacemaking efforts have ranged from financial assistance for various African initiatives (the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution) to proposals for the establishment of an African peacekeeping force commanded and staffed by Africans.

1996 Saw these proposals assuming a more concrete form with the visit to Africa of Warren Christopher to popularise and gain acceptance for the concept of an African Crisis Reaction Force (ACRF). This initiative was largely the product of three inter related factors. The first was the appalling demographic displacement and ethnic conflict that were occurring in the Great Lakes region of Central Africa and the concomitant calls for an African military response to the crisis. The second was the Clinton Administration`s commitment to pursue an African approach in resolving African conflicts – largely a product of domestic sensibilities regarding US involvement in peacekeeping initiatives in general. The third was the imminence of the American presidential elections in November 1996. Notwithstanding the disappointment of Warren Christopher over the lukewarm and cautious approach adopted towards the idea by many African states visited during his African tour, the idea of an ACRF is certainly not dead. It is reasonably certain that the new Secretary for State, Madeleine Albright, will continue championing the idea both in the US and among Africans, while present levels of `Afro-pessimism` will greatly empower her in this process.  

Author

Rocky Williams, Director of Defence Policy, Defence Secretariat, Department of Defence