US selling Africom to Ghana & Other African countries

PRETORIA – The United States’ principal deputy under secretary for defence, Ryan Henry, met South African government officials on Tuesday to inform them of plans for the US military’s new Africa command.

Henry is on a six-country African tour to try to convince governments on the continent that there is nothing sinister about the proposed US Africa Command, or Africom as it would be known.

“It would not be focused on fighting wars, it will be helping countries on the African continent building the capabilities of their militaries,” Henry said at a closed briefing for some South African reporters.

He said there were some concerns among African leaders, but these were mostly based on misconceptions.

“Once we cleared the misconceptions, the attitudes were generally positive,” he said.

In February, the US’s President George W Bush approved a Pentagon plan for a command centre for Africa to oversee US military activities on the continent. African ambassadors have already been briefed about the plan in Washington. Henry and a team of US defence officials are now visiting key African states including Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana and Senegal to “sell” the plan.

Further visits are planned for later in the year.

In Pretoria Henry met Defence Secretary January Masilela, senior SA Defence Force officers, and foreign affairs officials.

He emphasised that Africom, unlike other US Commands, would not be focused on military matters only.

“Security is a much broader discussion now than just military activity,” he said.

It would be unique among US commands in having a civilian staff component, and the second in command would be a high ranking US state department (foreign affairs) official.

Henry said the command would be headed by a four-star general. The location of the command was still being discussed. He said some African countries have already indicated their willingness to host the command post.

“Some countries have come forward, and one or two said they don’t want us. We don’t want our people anywhere were they are not wanted, so we would not go anywhere we were not invited in,” he said.

Henry emphasised that the new command would not entail the deployment of any additional US forces in Africa or the construction of new bases on the continent.

“We want to get out of that business,” he said.

The general heading Africom would be appointed before September, but the full command would only be up and running by the end of 2008. –Sapa