{"id":1460,"date":"2025-05-28T07:12:50","date_gmt":"2025-05-28T07:12:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/?p=1460"},"modified":"2025-05-28T07:12:50","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T07:12:50","slug":"how-trump-is-helping-china-iran-in-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/?p=1460","title":{"rendered":"How Trump Is Helping China, Iran in Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Welcome to <em>Foreign Policy<\/em>\u2019s Africa Brief.<\/p>\n<p>The highlights this week: U.S. President <strong>Donald Trump\u2019s Africa policy<\/strong> is a boon to China and Iran, South African President <strong>Cyril<\/strong> <strong>Ramaphosa wins praise<\/strong> after his trip to Washington, and the United States announces plans to impose <strong>sanctions on Sudan<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode-fallback\">\n<h2 class=\"dek-heading\">\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/category\/africa-brief\/\">Sign up<\/a>  to receive Africa Brief in your inbox every Wednesday.            <\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-shortcode-newsletter=\"africa_brief\" class=\"newsletter-unit-signup newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode email-capture--step-1 newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode-africa_brief\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-africa_brief newsletter-shortcode-africa_brief\">\n<div class=\"show-on-email-capture--signed-up hide-from-newsletter-subscriber newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode--container\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-unit newsletters-page newsletter-row\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-africa_brief\">\n<h2 class=\"dek-heading\">Sign up to receive Africa Brief in your inbox every Wednesday.<\/h2>\n<p>\n                        <button class=\"button\">Sign Up<\/button>\n                    <\/p>\n<div class=\"grid--flex newsletter-africa_brief newsletter-signup-container\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"Africa Brief sign up form\" tabindex=\"0\">\n<div class=\"buttons\">\n<div class=\"hide-from-newsletter-subscriber privacy-policy-container\">\n<div class=\"privacy-policy-acknowledge\">\n<p><small>By submitting your email, you agree to the <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/privacy\/\" target=\"_blank\">Privacy Policy<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/termsofuse\/\" target=\"_blank\">Terms of Use<\/a> and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.<\/small><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\n    <label for=\"email-africa_brief\">Enter your email<\/label><br \/>\n    <input type=\"email\" name=\"email\" class=\"hide-from-reg hide-from-sub\" id=\"email-africa_brief\" aria-required=\"true\" required=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>    <button class=\"button button--signup \" data-newsletter-id=\"africa_brief\" data-sourceid=\"In-article unit\">Sign Up<\/button>\n  <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<hr\/>\n<h3>Trump\u2019s Shortsighted Africa Policy<\/h3>\n<p>U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/05\/21\/trump-ramaphosa-south-africa-meeting-genocide-white-farmers-land-redistribution\/\">ambush<\/a> of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House last week has cemented the consensus among many African leaders that Washington has written itself out of the continent\u2019s future.<\/p>\n<p>The meeting between Trump and Ramaphosa followed months of U.S. foreign policy that has deprioritized Africa\u2014a continent that will soon make up the world\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.economist.com\/briefing\/2025\/04\/24\/emigration-from-africa-will-change-the-world\">largest<\/a> workforce and, by 2050, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2023\/10\/28\/world\/africa\/africa-youth-population.html\">account for<\/a> a quarter of the people on the planet.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, the Trump administration\u2019s decision to shutter the U.S. Agency for International Development has threatened <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cy7x87ev5jyo\">starvation<\/a> in Sudan and a rollback of gains in HIV\/AIDS treatment in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/global-development\/2025\/mar\/18\/global-health-trump-usaid-cuts-hiv-aids-2030-drugs-vaccine-research-africa\">South Africa<\/a>. Washington has also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Fiscal-Year-2026-Discretionary-Budget-Request.pdf\">proposed<\/a> plans to cut $555 million in funding to the continent\u2019s main infrastructure lender, the African Development Bank.<\/p>\n<p>As the United States steps back, Washington\u2019s adversaries are looking to expand their political and economic influence on the continent.<\/p>\n<p>Iranian officials have stepped up efforts to secure deals off the back of the third Iran-Africa Economic Cooperation Conference, held in Tehran in late April. More than 50 senior officials from 29 African nations <a href=\"https:\/\/en.isna.ir\/photo\/1404020704425\/The-3rd-Iran-Africa-Economic-Cooperation-Conference\">attended<\/a> the summit, according to Iranian state media.<\/p>\n<p>At the conference, Mohammad Atabak\u2014Iran\u2019s minister of industry, mines, and trade\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tehrantimes.com\/news\/512357\/Iran-Africa-seek-expansion-of-ties-in-a-variety-of-areas\">said<\/a> that Tehran intends to increase its annual trade with Africa from $1.2 billion to $10 billion. This includes <a href=\"https:\/\/newspaper.irandaily.ir\/7822\/4\/15151\">plans<\/a> to establish new shipping and air routes to the continent, set up a joint Iran-Africa development fund, and allocate a $2 billion credit line for buying goods from Africa.<\/p>\n<p>Iran sees potential in <a href=\"http:\/\/alwaght.net\/en\/News\/264792\/Iran-Africa-Forum-Golden-Opportunity-for-Higher-Level-Trade\">agriculture<\/a> cooperation with African countries. Although no deal between Iran and Kenya was announced, Nairobi, which sent a high-level delegation to Tehran to attend the summit, has been <a href=\"https:\/\/nairobilawmonthly.com\/kagwe-leads-push-to-unlock-iran-market-for-kenyan-tea\/\">pushing<\/a> to increase its exports of tea, coffee, and other goods to Iran in exchange for opening its markets to Iranian oil.<\/p>\n<p>Kenya is one of the countries that has relied on the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which allows duty-free access to the U.S. market. But Trump has effectively ended AGOA by imposing a <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/04\/09\/trump-tariffs-africa-lesotho-trade-response-china\/\">blanket 10 percent<\/a> tariff on nearly all nations, including AGOA beneficiaries. AGOA is officially due to expire in September, putting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessdailyafrica.com\/bd\/economy\/kenya-firms-earn-sh60bn-from-2024-agoa-exports-5031168\">66,000 <\/a>Kenyan jobs at risk.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Ethiopia\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fanamc.com\/english\/ethiopian-delegation-attending-3rd-africa-iran-economic-conference-in-tehran\/\">attendance<\/a> at the Tehran summit led to the signing of a <a href=\"https:\/\/addisstandard.com\/ethiopia-iran-police-chiefs-sign-security-intelligence-collaboration-mou\/?amp=1\">security pact<\/a><u> on May 6 <\/u>to help Addis Ababa deal with increased attacks from paramilitary forces, including factions of the Tigray People\u2019s Liberation Front and Fano, an Amhara militia.<\/p>\n<p>Under the new <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/iran-and-ethiopia-have-a-security-deal-heres-why-they-signed-it-256486\">agreement<\/a>, the two countries\u2019 national police agencies will collaborate on intelligence and training. Iran\u2019s drones were used during Ethiopia\u2019s civil war in Tigray from 2020 to 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Iran also hopes to increase trade with Algeria. Iran sent a delegation to Algeria <a href=\"https:\/\/thearabweekly.com\/amid-shifting-regional-dynamics-iran-reaches-out-algeria-alleviate-pressure\">last month<\/a>, and again <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mefa.ir\/en-US\/english.mefa\/13976\/news\/view\/28671\/280769\/Staging\/Iran's-Acting-Minister-of-Economy-Arrives-in-Algeria\">last week<\/a>, to strengthen bilateral relations. As Tehran seeks to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ispionline.it\/en\/publication\/irans-north-africa-play-a-strategic-bid-for-influence-in-algeria-and-tunisia-200122#:~:text=Economically,%20Iran%20seeks%20to%20bypass,Accords%E2%80%94moves%20Algeria%20strongly%20opposes.\">bypass sanctions<\/a>, Algeria\u2014a major gas exporter to Europe\u2014offers a possible gateway for economic and energy cooperation.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Beijing has ramped up its diplomacy on the continent. China\u2019s trade with Africa totaled <a href=\"https:\/\/africa-news-agency.com\/africa-china-trade-to-reach-295-56-billion-in-2024\/\">$296 billion<\/a> last year, compared with U.S.-Africa trade of around <a href=\"https:\/\/ustr.gov\/countries-regions\/africa#:~:text=Africa%20Trade%20Summary,($2.6%20billion)%20over%202023.\">$71.6 billion<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Since Trump took office in January, <a href=\"https:\/\/africa.businessinsider.com\/local\/markets\/china-expands-military-supply-pact-in-africa-with-new-nigeria-deal\/fmc9q97\">Nigeria<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scmp.com\/news\/china\/diplomacy\/article\/3305483\/after-delay-new-chinese-funding-plan-will-help-extend-railway-uganda-kenya-says\">Kenya<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/english.www.gov.cn\/news\/202503\/22\/content_WS67de1324c6d0868f4e8f10f3.html#:~:text=China,%20Zambia%20sign%20economic,%20technical%20cooperation%20agreement&amp;text=LUSAKA,%20March%2021%20--%20China,relationship%20between%20the%20two%20countries.\">Zambia<\/a> have signed infrastructure and security deals with China. A new <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/africa\/nigeria-approves-652-million-china-exim-bank-road-finance-package-2025-05-06\/\">$652 million<\/a> Chinese funding package, approved earlier this month, will finance a road connecting a sea port and the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos to Nigeria\u2019s southern states. Abuja also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/energy\/nigeria-open-two-chinese-backed-lithium-processing-plants-this-year-2025-05-26\/\">announced<\/a> on Sunday that Chinese investors are largely funding two new lithium processing plants in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>Pressure from the Trump administration may force vulnerable African nations to seek out short-term deals with Washington. But many African countries\u2019 economies are already becoming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbcafrica.com\/2025\/the-african-continent-is-relatively-immune-to-trumps-tariffs\/\">less reliant<\/a> on the United States for trade. Longer term, this will lead to further erosion of U.S. influence on the continent in favor of China, Iran, and other opportunistic states\u2014a trend that will not be easily reversed.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3>The Week Ahead<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Tuesday, May 27, to Thursday, May 29:<\/strong> Delegations from 40 African countries attend the International Meeting of High Representatives for Security Issues in Moscow.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Thursday, May 29:<\/strong> The United Nations Security Council discusses sanctions on South Sudan.<\/p>\n<p>The African Development Bank is due to announce its new president following a vote on Monday.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tuesday, June 3, to Friday, June 6:<\/strong> The European Union-Africa Forum on Cultural Diplomacy is held in Berlin.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3>What We\u2019re Watching<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Ramaphosa wins praise.<\/strong> Ramaphosa\u2019s calm, measured response to Trump\u2019s pre-planned ambush of him at the White House last week gave an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c2e3z8v1rvlo\">unexpected boost<\/a> to his popularity back home.<\/p>\n<p>At the meeting, Trump dimmed the lights of the Oval Office and showed a four-minute video montage that he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/africa\/under-attack-by-trump-south-africas-ramaphosa-responds-with-trade-deal-offer-2025-05-21\/\">claimed<\/a> proved his allegations of a \u201cwhite genocide\u201d in South Africa. The video included a clip of Julius Malema, the leader of radical left-wing opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), singing \u201cKill the Boer,\u201d a controversial anti-apartheid song. (Malema has been one of the most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/05\/22\/world\/africa\/julius-malema-south-africa-white-house-video.html\">vocal critics<\/a> of Ramaphosa and his coalition government.)<\/p>\n<p>The video ended with aerial footage of white crosses, which Trump said marked the graves of \u201cover 1,000 white farmers.\u201d In reality, the crosses were erected as a memorial after the murder of a white couple, Glen and Vida Rafferty, on their farm during a 2020 robbery. Two men were sentenced to <a href=\"https:\/\/iol.co.za\/mercury\/news\/2022-11-17-robbers-who-attacked-and-killed-normandien-couple-upon-their-return-to-their-farm-handed-life-sentences\/\">life imprisonment<\/a> for the killings, and the crosses are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/ce9vxve994ro\">no longer<\/a> on the site.<\/p>\n<p>Trump also showed Ramaphosa a printout with an image of what he alleged were body bags of dead white farmers. But this was actually a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/africa\/trumps-image-dead-white-farmers-came-reuters-footage-congo-not-south-africa-2025-05-22\/\">Reuters photo<\/a> of Black Congolese killed during fighting between the Democratic Republic of the Congo\u2019s army and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels.<\/p>\n<p>On Friday, the South African police pushed back against Trump\u2019s false claims as it released statistics for the first three months of 2025. Although the country\u2019s crime statistics do not normally reference race, the announcement made clear that of the six farm murders that have taken place this year, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymaverick.co.za\/article\/2025-05-23-five-of-six-farm-murder-victims-were-black-police-minister-senzo-mchunu-rubbishes-trumps-white-genocide-lies\/?dm_source=dm_block_list&amp;dm_medium=card_link&amp;dm_campaign=main\">five of the victims<\/a> were Black.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Trump\u2019s deportations.<\/strong> A federal judge in Boston <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/trump-official-says-us-seeking-deport-eight-serious-criminals-declines-confirm-2025-05-21\/\">ruled<\/a> last Wednesday that the Trump administration \u201cunquestionably\u201d violated his previous injunction by attempting to deport eight migrants from countries including Laos, Mexico, and Vietnam to South Sudan, a nation that is <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/05\/07\/south-sudan-conflict-hospital-bombing-civil-war-civilian-casualties\/\">on the brink of civil war<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>To comply with the order, the migrants will remain for at least<a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2025\/05\/22\/nx-s1-5408000\/white-house-agrees-to-keep-migrants-in-djibouti-for-now-blasts-federal-judges-ruling\"> two weeks<\/a> in Djibouti, where the United States has a military base.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration appears to be pressuring fragile African countries to accept foreign deportees. In April, Washington <a href=\"https:\/\/www.passblue.com\/2025\/04\/30\/un-peacekeeping-mission-caught-between-us-south-sudan-rift\/\">withdrew<\/a> its military personnel from a U.N. peacekeeping mission in South Sudan and revoked visas for all South Sudanese nationals in response to Juba\u2019s refusal to accept a Congolese man deported from the United States. South Sudan later <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/south-sudan-us-visas-b78fb4e1b45a6eb7cfd72ad52d58ccf0\">agreed<\/a> to receive the man \u201cin the spirit\u201d of \u201cfriendly relations,\u201d but the United States has yet to reverse its decision.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, a judge temporarily <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/us-deporting-migrants-libya-rcna205383\">blocked<\/a> the Trump administration from deporting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/us-deporting-migrants-libya-rcna205383\">Southeast Asian<\/a> migrants to Libya, another country mired in an ongoing conflict.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sudan sanctions. <\/strong>Last week, the United States announced plans to impose <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/releases\/office-of-the-spokesperson\/2025\/05\/imposing-measures-on-sudan-for-its-use-of-chemical-weapons\/\">sanctions<\/a> on Sudan\u2019s de facto military government after finding that it used chemical weapons in 2024 in its ongoing war with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The sanctions will go into effect around June 6.<\/p>\n<p>The sanctions notice did not specify which chemical weapons were used, but the <em>New York Times<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/16\/world\/africa\/sudan-chemical-weapons-sanctions.html\">reported<\/a> in January that Sudan appeared to use chlorine gas in at least two incidents. The conflict, which recently entered its third year, has killed more than 150,000 people.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3>FP\u2019s Most Read This Week<\/h3>\n<hr\/>\n<h3>What We\u2019re Reading<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Rigged election.<\/strong> Zimbabwe\u2019s ruling Zanu-PF party helped to rig its neighbor Mozambique\u2019s 2024 election, Walter Marwizi and Garikai Mafirakureva <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecontinent.org\/_files\/ugd\/287178_e5fe6065b3f74c2e9d61f41d4990979b.pdf?index=true\">report<\/a> in the <em>Continent<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Mozambique\u2019s Frelimo party has been in power since the country\u2019s independence in 1975. After its presidential candidate, Daniel Chapo, claimed to win last October\u2019s election with more than 70 percent of the vote, thousands of Mozambicans took part in waves of demonstrations over <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/01\/22\/mozambique-chapo-government-protests\/\">alleged election fraud<\/a>. As the state has cracked down on the protests, more than 300 people have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amnesty.org\/en\/latest\/news\/2025\/02\/mozambique-authorities-must-investigate-reports-of-more-than-300-unlawful-killings-during-post-election-protest-crackdown\/\">reportedly<\/a> been killed.<\/p>\n<p>According to Marwizi and Mafirakureva\u2019s investigation, which was produced by the South Africa Accountability Journalism Project, Zanu-PF gave Zimbabweans fake Mozambican IDs and asked them to cross the border and vote for Frelimo. The alliance between Zanu-PF and Frelimo is one of the continent\u2019s strongest and dates back to independence.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Absent dandies.<\/strong> The Metropolitan Museum of Art\u2019s current exhibition on Black dandyism\u2014which was also the theme of this year\u2019s Met Gala\u2014leaves out the full story of the movement, Achille Tenkiang <a href=\"https:\/\/africasacountry.com\/2025\/05\/velvet-rebellions\">argues<\/a> in <em>Africa Is a Country<\/em>. The figures who embody Black dandyism\u2019s subversive and defiant history are \u201ccuriously absent,\u201d Tenkiang writes.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Tenkiang writes, \u201cacross the East River from the Met\u2014where the tailoring of Blackness was on full curatorial display\u2014Black and African migrants line up outside overcrowded shelters, the target of caustic rhetoric and policy failure. \u2026 [New York\u2019s] capability to exalt Black elegance in one zip code while surveilling Black arrival in another is not a contradiction, but a structure.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/05\/28\/trump-africa-policy-ramaphosa-meeting-china-iran\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to Foreign Policy\u2019s Africa Brief. The highlights this week: U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s Africa policy is a boon to China and Iran, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa wins praise after his trip to Washington, and the United States announces plans to impose sanctions on Sudan. Sign up to receive Africa Brief in your inbox [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1461,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1460","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politcical-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1460"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1460\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1461"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}