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der_titan t1_ja8omh6 wrote

Reply to comment by CuriousShower9 in Macron flies to Africa to counter waning French influence by HRJafael

I think you have your cause and effect reversed. It was the countries in Europe that colonized and exploited Africa. Russian and Chinese involvement in Africa (and the Global South in general) was a response to Western exploitation and colonization.

The USSR / Russia have goodwill because they helped Africans expel the colonizers. Mozambique even put the AK-47 on its flag! By no means were the Soviets acting out of benevolence, but nonetheless there is goodwill towards Russia that continues today.

China also has been investing heavily in Africa, and providing developmental aid with more favorable terms, lower interest rates, and often fewer restrictions than Western aid. Again, it's not out of benevolence but it does engender good will towards China.

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LeGuizee t1_ja93v4y wrote

When the African will wake up they will realize that most of their strategic infrastructures are owned by China. But Because its not due to direct colonization they don’t see what is coming.

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der_titan t1_ja96q1u wrote

Even putting aside the ravages of colonialism, the IMF and World Bank have their own disastrous records in Africa creating export and debt traps that have devastated nations.

It's paternalistic to imply that an entire continent is naive rather than making informed choices.

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guysguy t1_ja9eypg wrote

Yes. African countries are all stupid. That’s why they don’t see how the IMF‘s and WorldBank offerings are great but the Chinese investment offerings are terrible. If only they could see how China will do the exact same thing we’ve been doing for hundreds of years.

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Cytizens9320 t1_ja9ig0w wrote

There's few African leaders that have their countries best interest. i can count them with one hand

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SignificantOkra7208 t1_jaankuj wrote

I didn't realize Africans had the monopoly on selfish leaders, the African populace must be really stupid.

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Stormwind-Champion t1_jaax7h9 wrote

yeah cuz the africans are dumb and they don't know what's best for their own countries. instead they should listen to you

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bobby_j_canada t1_jab5ms8 wrote

Ah yes, because those silly Africans don't know what's good for them and need a clever Westerner to make decisions on their behalf, right?

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Venvut t1_ja9xsc2 wrote

They don’t care because China is an idiot to think they’d ever repay them. China is already struggling with this.

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Chubbybellylover888 t1_jaaxwg6 wrote

Eh... Look up the African Frank. France has had economic sovereignty over most of western Africa for over half a century post-decolonisation.

It never stopped.

Russia and China are new to the game with regards to Imperialism in Africa. European nations are a full very much making bank on their exploits.

I say this as an EU citizen.

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f_d t1_ja9yoid wrote

>It was the countries in Europe that colonized and exploited Africa.

That's what they meant by post-colonial.

>Russian and Chinese involvement in Africa (and the Global South in general) was a response to Western exploitation and colonization.

Russia and China don't "respond" to those things in other countries. They look for their own opportunities to take advantage and guarantee access to resources, like nearly every other country does in its own way. If nobody else was in the way, they would be doing more of it.

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Snack378 t1_jabzqt4 wrote

>The USSR / Russia have goodwill because they helped Africans expel the colonizers.

Oh yeah, people in Zimbabwe so grateful for USSR's/China's support for Mugabe, he was such good leader /s

You are ignorant fool, all they done is ruined almost entire continent with their weapon supply for tyrants.

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actuallyimean2befair t1_jabvavq wrote

Let them see what it's like with China running the show.

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arsinoe716 t1_jac4i99 wrote

They are already benefiting from it. They get infrastructure built as opposed to infrastructure being bombed.

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DaNo1CheeseEata t1_ja9fmzj wrote

> The USSR / Russia have goodwill because they helped Africans expel the colonizers

Yeah, another way to put it is they backed friendly movements and regimes that were even more brutal and oppressive then the ones they replaced. Decades later the results speak for themselves.

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WheresMyEtherElon t1_jaaqqfz wrote

As someone who grew up under a regime backed by the Soviets that drove the country to the ground, and which replaced a regime backed by the French during which the country had a somewhat adequate level of development, hoping for anything from the Russians is an absolute idiocy. The gap in standard of livings between my youth and my parents' youth was abysmal, and not all of that is because of corruption (because the French-backed regime was corrupt as well).

I don't know enough about China to have an informed opinion.

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