PREVIEW
Foreign Minister Fidan will meet with AU ministers to discuss improving cooperation between Turkey and the continent
Ankara plans to use a Turkey-Africa ministerial meeting later this week to step up its growing influence on the continent.
The ministerial review with the African Union, which will be held in Djibouti from 2-3 November will be attended by representatives from 14 African countries, along with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, officials in Ankara have said. The gathering will also set the scene for a Turkey-Africa summit in 2026.
One of a string of middle-ranking powers aiming to increase its diplomatic heft in Africa, and the global south more broadly, Turkey’s offer has tended to focus on providing defence equipment and military training to states. It has also supplied armed drones to Somalia, Ethiopia and others (AC Vol 65 No 19, Middle powers line up behind Addis and Mogadishu).
Somalia signed a defence agreement with Turkey in February to protect its coastline and train its naval force. Turkey is also a big investor in neighbouring Ethiopia.
On the diplomatic front, Turkey has been one of a group of states to attempt to mediate peace talks between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces this year.
Meanwhile, Ankara’s trade with Africa has increased steadily to over US$40 billion a year. It also wants to become the first NATO member to join the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) group but was not among the group of new members and ‘partner countries’ announced in Kazan last week (Dispatches 22/10/24, Grain and credit ratings at the heart of Putin’s plan).
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