The war in Gaza divides African countries far more than their differences Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine.
“Unlike the Russia-Ukraine conflict, we saw an attempt by the African leadership to respond as a bloc,” Fredson Guilengue, an analyst at the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, linked to Germany’s Socialist Left party, told DW in Johannesburg. .
Support from African countries for the UN General Assembly Resolution March 2, 2022 the demand for Russia’s withdrawal from Ukraine was relatively weak. Just 28 of Africa’s 54 member states voted in favour, while 17 abstained and eight did not vote. Eritrea, a dictatorship, voted against the resolution.
But many African countries have emphatically and consistently called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, said Alex Vines, head of the Africa program at the Chatham House policy institute in London. “There have been very few countries on the African continent that have adopted a pro-Israel stance,” he said.
The African Union he was quick to side with the Palestinians, with AU Commission President Musa Faki Mahamat appealing to both sides to end hostilities.
“The president wishes to recall that the denial of the Palestinian people’s fundamental rights, particularly that of an independent and sovereign state, is the root cause of ongoing Israeli-Palestinian tension,” he said in an Oct. 7 statement. that day Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist group by the US, EU and other governments, has attacked communities inside Israel. It later became clear that Hamas had killed nearly 1,200 people and taken around 240 hostages.
Israel sees both support and criticism
Some African countries have expressed their support for Israel, Guilengue said. Kenya, Ghana, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo have shown solidarity with Israel and explicitly condemned Hamas. In Kenya, for example, President William Ruto has spoken out strongly against terrorism and attacks on innocent civilians, despite criticism from opposition politicians who have called for relations with Israel to cut.
Other countries, South Africa in particular, they have taken a pro-Palestinian position, Guilengue said. The country has not openly condemned Hamas and blames Israel for escalating the conflict. In late November, South African MPs voted to cut diplomatic ties, although the decision is not binding on the government.
The government has called on the International Criminal Court in The Hague to investigate whether Israel has committed war crimes in the Gaza Strip, repeatedly comparing the country’s military response to Hamas attacks to genocide.
Guilengue said these reactions had to do with South Africa’s history of apartheid, which many compare to conditions and events in Gauze. Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor has repeatedly said South Africa will not be drawn into taking sides, but criticized the West for selectively condemning Russia while ignoring other aggressions such as Israel’s occupation Palestinian territories.
Protecting Africa’s interests
People across Africa have long shown solidarity with the Palestinians, said Gilles Yabi, head of Wathi, a Senegal-based think tank that focuses on West Africa. A sense of a shared history of colonialism plays an important role in this attitude. Many governments across Africa support the establishment of a Palestinian state that could exist alongside Israel, Yabi recently said on his podcast for the International Crisis Group.
Countries that have allied with Israel are motivated by other factors, such as military and economic support from the country and its allies, Guilengue said.
“They actually don’t want to show a position that would be against Israel’s interests,” he said, “because it might also mean going against the interests of the United States and the West.”
Although Russia does not have a presence in Africa at the same level as the most powerful European countries and the United States, it is still valued as a partner by many countries.
Ukraine is considered a European security issue
Some African governments see Russia’s war against Ukraine as a matter of European security interests. During 2023, African countries have increasingly decided that they do not want to be pigeonholed in their response to global crises. “They don’t want to be pro-Western, pro-Chinese or pro-Russian,” said Chatham House expert Vines.
Therefore, the number of votes in favor of Russia in the UN General Assembly has decreased significantly. “Many African countries are increasingly voting a la carte on these issues,” Vines said.
African countries have stood firm against diplomatic pressure on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Guilengue said. Despite visits by high-ranking representatives of Russia and Western nations, governments across Africa have maintained a largely neutral position, relying on peace brokers. The AU, including South Africa, sent delegations to Russia and Ukraine after the war broke out to propose ways to resolve the conflict.
This is in line with the effort of African governments to take a more active role in global diplomacy, while at the same time consolidating the economic importance of players such as Chinawhich offer alternative solutions for aid and investment.
This article was originally written in German.