Will the next war for oil be in Africa?

By – presa latina.- cuba

20/06/08

The number of Americans who believe that the war in Iraq was a mistake has surpassed the number who felt the same way about Vietnam during that war.

At the same time, a much quieter US military build-up is underway on another continent. The ultimate objective of the two efforts is the same: securing Big Oil’s access to the regions’ oil. The impact in Africa will likely be the same as in Iraq: perpetual occupation, instability, and growing anti-Americanism.

In recognition of “the emerging strategic importance of Africa,” in February 2007 President Bush ordered the creation of AFRICOM, the US Africa Command.

AFRICOM, like CENTCOM (Central Command) and EUCOM (European Command), centralizes all authority for the US military operating in the African region under one command structure.

AFRICOM also transfers many duties that previously belonged to nonmilitary US agencies —such as building schools and digging wells—to the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense.

While fighting terrorism in Africa is the primary reason given for the establishment of AFRICOM, oil appears to be the more pressing motivator.

“A key mission for US forces [in Africa] would be to insure that Nigeria’s oilfields, which in the future could account for as much as 25 percent of all US oil imports, are secure,” explains General Charles Wald, deputy commander of U.S. forces in Europe in an interview with Wall Street Journal writer Greg Jaffe.

To secure and maintain access to oil —if not for the nation, then most certainly for our oil companies— the Bush administration has increasingly turned toward the US military.

Author Kevin Phillips coined the term “petrol-imperialism” to describe the Bush administration’s policies in this regard, “the key aspect of which is the US military’s transformation into a global oil protection force.”

Under the rubric of the Global War on Terror, the Bush administration has implemented the greatest realignment of US forces since the end of the Cold War. With a map of Big Oil’s overseas operations, the world’s remaining oil reserves, and oil transport routes, one can now track the realignment and predict future deployments of the US military.

Africa, with almost 10% of the world’s remaining oil, is an area of increasing activity for both Big Oil and the US military. Between 2000 and 2007, US imports of oil from Africa increased by 65 percent, from 1.6 to 2.7 million barrels a day, according to the US Department of Energy.

These imports, in turn, accounted for a growing percentage of all US oil imports: increasing from 14.5% in 2000 to 20% in 2007. Both trends are expected to accelerate in the future.

Not only is the United States importing more African oil, but US oil companies are also increasing their African reserves and their presence on the continent.

According to SEC tax filings, in 2000, ExxonMobil operated in just three African nations — Angola, Equatorial Guinea, and Nigeria — and its production there was negligible relative to the rest of the world.

Today, ExxonMobil operates in Angola, Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, and Nigeria, and is set to begin work in Libya. Its African holdings account for nearly 17% of the company’s global oil reserves.

According to 2008 SEC Tax Filings, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and Marathon, among other US oil companies, are also increasing their presence, with each operating in three or more of the following countries: Algeria, Angola, Cameroon, Chad, the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, and Nigeria.

According to US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, US companies hope to expand their operations further, with Madagascar, Benin, Sao Tome and Principe, and Guinea-Bissau among potential future targets.

Shell and BP, both with large US affiliates that are active in both US political campaigns and domestic lobbying efforts, are also expanding their already sizeable African operations.

The Bush administration has increasingly turned to the Department of Defense to ensure more stable governments in Africa that are supportive of both the US government and US (and US-affiliated) oil corporations and to guarantee an amenable (some would argue, subdued) populace.

The Administration has increased the provision of both arms and direct military services and training to Africa, such that today Angola, Algeria, Botswana, Chad, Cote d’Iviore, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda are all direct recipients of such assistance.

General James Jones, EUCOM Commander, announced that US Navy carrier battle groups would shorten future visits to the Mediterranean and “spend half the time going down the west coast to Africa.”

The former French Foreign Legion base, Camp Lemonier in Djibouti, became home to the US military’s Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa in 2003.

AFRICOM is currently headquartered in Germany, but intends to “establish a presence” on the African continent this year. There are several options for new US military bases, including a naval base and deepwater port on the tiny island of Sao Tome off the coast of Gabon, located in West Africa.

The Pentagon is also considering new bases in Senegal, Ghana, and Mali.

US oil companies have long used African military and security forces to protect their oil interests. Perhaps it is more honest for the US military to take more direct oversight over these operations.

But the risks far outweigh any potential benefit. The United States is already engaged in one war for oil in Iraq and the US military knows this.

General John Abizaid, retired head of US Central Command and military operations in Iraq, said of the war, “Of course it’s about oil, we can’t really deny that.”

The concern is that, as it has in Iraq, a larger U.S. military presence in Africa will strain an already overburdened military while increasing internal hostilities, regional instability, and anger at the United States.

The answer to our nation’s oil addiction is not to secure new and diverse suppliers. We need to kick the habit and just say no, beginning with AFRICOM.

(*)Antonia Juhasz is a Foreign Policy In Focus Policy Analyst. Her new book, The Tyranny of Oil: the World’s Most Powerful Industry, and What We Must Do To Stop It, will be released in October by HarperCollins Publishers. Posted by Foreign Policy in Focus, Jun 18,2008.

Egyptian Deportation of Eritreans

Press Statement
Sean McCormack, Spokesman
Washington, DC
June 20, 2008

The United States notes the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ (UNHCR’s) statement on the forcible repatriation of hundreds Eritrean asylum seekers over the last week. Given the increasingly repressive nature of the Eritrean Government, Eritrean citizens are in grave danger of persecution, including torture, upon their return.

We understand that the Egyptian government has agreed to grant the UNHCR access to Eritreans in custody. We ask that the Government of Egypt continue to cooperate with the UNHCR and maintain its generous asylum policy, including respect for its obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention, and that it immediately halt deportations to Eritrea.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has called for countries to refrain from all returns of rejected asylum seekers to Eritrea and instead grant them some complementary form of protection.

2008/515

Released on June 20, 2008

Djibouti alleges Eritrean incursion

Djibouti has produced documents showing Eritrean troops on Djiboutian land

Aljazeera.net, Qatar

20/06/08

Djibouti has accused neighbouring Eritrea of illegally intruding into its territory.

Mahmoud Ali Youssef, the Djiboutian foreign minister, told Al Jazeera on Friday that Eritrean troops crossed the border on the Bab Al Mandeb Strait and took control of Djiboutian land.

Youssef said: “Eritrean troops entered Djiboutian territory and took more land.

“Right now, Eritrean troops are stationed inside Djiboutian territories.”

The Bab Al Mandeb Strait south of the Red Sea is a key navigation route and the subject of a border dispute between the two countries.

Youssef continued: “The UN Security Council has asked for both countries to withdraw their troops from this area.

“The Djiboutian government has withdrawn its forces up to 5km inside the Djiboutian land. But Eritrean forces have advanced.”

The Bab Al Mandab Strait is a strategic passage separating the Arabian Peninsula from East Africa. It is a key trade and oil route linking Europe to the east.

Eritrea denies its troops have crossed the border.

‘Documented evidence’

But Youssef showed Al Jazeera documents, pictures and maps that have been submitted to the UN.

According to him, these show the trenches dug by Eritrean troops on Djiboutian land.Last week troops of the two countries clashed.

Some analysts think Eritrea has already claimed the Bab Al Mandab Strait.

Mahmoud Taha Towkal, a political analyst, said: “There is a new reality. Under recent developments, the Bab Al Mandeb Strait is no longer under the control of Djibouti and Yemen.

“It is now controlled by three countries: Djibouti, Eritrea and Yemen. It is no longer under the control of the Arab countries.”

Both the US and France have military bases in Djibouti. France also has a mutual defence accord with its former colony and supplies it with intelligence.

Observers say this may deter a widespread conflict.

World Refugee Day

20 Jun 2008 10:50:16 GMT

Source: UNHCR

Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author’s alone.

rld Refugee Day, and across the globe, in the 116 countries where UNHCR works, staff, refugees and humanitarian partners are involved in a huge range of activities to mark the occasion including experiencing refugee life in a UNHCR tent – that’s happening right outside on the Place des Nations here in Geneva from 9am – 4pm – bridge lighting, sports events, concerts, photo exhibitions and film festivals.

Refugees show incredible courage and perseverance and this year’s overall theme of ‘Protection’ is a reflection of the need and right to protection that refugees deserve.

To show his solidarity with the millions of refugees and displaced, and pay tribute to all those humanitarians who help them, High Commissioner António Guterres is on a three-day mission in Kenya seeing first hand the situation displaced Kenyans and of Somali refugees uprooted from their war-ravaged country. He described Somalia as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises and urged the international community to make peace in Somalia a priority. He acknowledged that UNHCR had to do more to help those uprooted by the 17-year conflict and has had meetings with the UN country team on the issue today. According to UNHCR’s global statistics for 2007, released Tuesday, Somalis were the fifth largest group of refugees and sixth largest group of internally displaced people under UNHCR’s care worldwide. The new statistics showed globally there were 11.4 million refugees outside their countries and 26 million others displaced internally by conflict or persecution at the end of 2007.

On Thursday, the eve of World Refugee Day, the High Commissioner visited Kenyans in the Rift Valley displaced by post-election violence. While more than 195,000 displaced Kenyans had returned home, according to Kenyan officials, there were still 43,000 in camps around in the country. In Naivasha, where there are two camps, Mr Guterres told the displaced that a camp should only be a short-term solution and his biggest wish is that they should be able to return home soon in safety and dignity.

And, today, on the final leg of his visit, he is in Nairobi to join in World Refugee Day celebrations.

Ethiopia: aid workers exaggerated drought threat

By Tsegaye Tadesse

20/06/08 ADDIS ABABA (Reuters)

Ethiopia accused some aid agencies on Friday of exaggerating the impact of a drought afflicting the country to raise money under false pretences.

Deputy Prime Minister Adisu Legesse said in a statement that some 4.6 million people and around 75,000 children needed help because of the failure of April-March rains.

“But this does not mean there is famine … These humanitarian organisations are showing pictures of emaciated babies on television, telling the world 6 million children are malnourished and that there will be a calamity unless they receive funds,” he said.

“While we appreciate assistance whenever it is needed, we reject being used as publicity to raise funds under false pretences,” said Adisu, who is also Ethiopia’s minister of agriculture and rural development.

Adisu did not name the aid agencies in question.

Ethiopia, sub-Saharan Africa’s second most populous nation, needs $325 million to provide 400,000 tonnes of food, especially in the south and southeast regions bordering Somalia and Kenya, according to the United Nations.

The dire conditions have revived grim memories of the country’s 1984-1985 famine, which killed more than 1 million.

About 85 percent of Ethiopia’s 81 million people still rely on subsistence agriculture.

“The government has imported new technologies to help boost the agricultural output of farmers. They are being provided with fertilisers and selected seeds, as well as other inputs, to help them produce more,” Adisu said.

“As we have said earlier, we are committed to boost the country’s annual crop production from the current 16 million tonnes to 30 million tonnes in the shortest possible time.”

Adugna Jabessa, Ethiopia’s state minister for water resources, said the government was working with an Israeli company to develop an irrigation system that will cover 274,000 hectares of farmland

Obama: Much Ado About Nothing, or Not?

Friday, 20th of June 2008

EEWA!Charles Tjatindi

NEWS is finally out that Barack Obama is the sole candidate of the Democratic Party to contest the American presidency. The road has been a long and winding one, albeit with a relatively few pitfalls for the Afro-American senator. When nominations revealed that for the first time a woman and an Afro-American were in the running for the world’s largest economy’s presidency, the writing was on the wall for American politics.

Obama’s victory over fellow Democrat and former first lady Hilary Clinton for a Democrat candidacy has had many Afro-Americans rejoicing. Many attributed Obama’s victory to the dream of slain American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jnr, who in his ‘dream’ envisaged a better future for the black American.

The euphoria, as my colleague John Ekongo recently reported, has also spread to Africans, who are hailing Obama’s run for the White House as a success story for Africans.

Although some are down-playing the Obama story, it goes without saying that history books will be transcribed with every progress the Illinois senator makes in the race for the American presidency. Biographers will be pouncing on Obama to ‘document’ his story – regardless of whether he makes it to the White House or not. So will film makers, historians … the list is endless.

Besides rejoicing in Obama’s success or anticipated victory for that matter, I must say I fail to understand where the loyalty of Africans lies. Don’t get me wrong, I too triumph in the Illinois Senator’s victory, but just feel that Africans can do more than that!

Obama’s nomination as sole Democrat for the race to the White House against Republican John McCain came merely a few days after our own brothers and sisters fled attacks in South Africa.

Earlier in the week, Malawi had bussed its citizens who had also fallen victim to the attacks on foreigners out of South Africa. We have seen how election results provoked tension in Kenya – the same country where Obama’s father hails. Fighting in parts of Uganda and DRC, Somalia, and Sudan continues to claim innocent lives. What’s more, the noble dream of Africa’s forefathers Jomo Kenyata, Kwame Nkrumah and others, of a united Africa seems elusive, as it continuously slips further away from reach.

So, tell me Africans, if we are rejoicing for Obama in the spirit of ubuntu, why have we been silent about the killing of innocents and the shedding of blood for selfish and self-centered reasons? How often do we blame the West and former colonial powers for having divided us along racial and tribal lines, yet we are perpetrators of the same evils ourselves?

Namibia only has a few tribal groups in relation to some other African countries that have in excess of 20 tribal groups?

We, however, still find it hard to break the race and tribal barriers and integrate for the development of our country. The first thing you do when being introduced to another person for the first time is subconsciously trying to figure out from which tribal group he hails by his accent and intonation! You still hear people putting their tribal origin first before anything else.

As much as we would want to turn a blind eye on it – tribal division is clearly evident in an independent Namibia. Relationships, let alone inter-tribal marriages, are still being looked down on, as stereotyping takes centre stage.

Come on Africans, how do you define ubuntu? Is it by attacking your ‘brothers and sisters’ for personal reasons simply because they are foreigners, and at the same time pledging your undying patronage for someone in a country as far away as the United States? Africans recently celebrated Africa Day – what a shame, you could count the number of people present at events countrywide, yet those boozing at drinking holes and house parties were uncountable. Ubuntu? I guess ubuntu, Ujamaa, or whatever you call it only applies to Obama!

I suggest we shift our focus to efforts that aim to develop and unite our beloved continent, while wishing Senator Obama all the best.
Let’s raise our glasses to Obama and say, Eewa!

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UN Criticizes Eritreans Deportations From Egypt

 

Joseph Mayton

AHN Middle East Correspondent

20/06/08

Cairo, Egypt (AHN) – Egypt is facing much criticism over the deportation of hundreds of Eritrean asylum seekers over the past week. The United Nations has urged Cairo to cease all deportations for the time being in order to assess the human rights situation.

However, Egypt has continued its policy of forced removal from the country, with some reports saying that as many 600 have been expelled and another 600 are expected to be deported in the coming days.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has expressed alarm at the massive expulsions and urged Egypt to stop deporting asylum seekers from Eritrea, saying they could face great risks in their home country.

“People who could well be at risk in their home country should never be sent back before their asylum claims have been properly addressed,” Arbour said in a statement released earlier in Geneva.

“Egypt should respect its international obligations not to send home anyone who could face torture or other serious forms of ill treatment, as may well be the case with those who have apparently been deported in recent days.”

The UN commissioner did welcome Egypt’s decision last Sunday to allow the UN refugee agency to access the Eritrean asylum seekers in order to determine if they have legitimate refugee claims.

1,503 Eritreans are currently registered with the UN in Egypt as refugees and asylum seekers, although most activists argue the number should be much higher.