WASHINGTON, March 24. /TASS/. The US cutback of funding for a variety of humanitarian programs will lead to a decline in the country’s influence in Africa and create a gap that other states, primarily Russia, China, the UAE, and Turkey, will seek to fill, The Washington Post wrote.
The United States annually allocated about $70 billion for foreign aid spending, primarily through the Agency for International Development (USAID), the paper wrote, adding that about a quarter of USAID’s budget was devoted to Africa. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced this month that 83% of programs administered by the USAID were being terminated. This will rapidly diminish key elements of the US presence in Africa and lead to a reduction in the country's influence and level of US soft power on the continent, the newspaper pointed out, citing experts.
"Nature abhors a vacuum; if we are not engaged, someone else will be," Philip Breedlove, a former supreme allied commander of NATO, told The Washington Post, adding that there are lots of countries with great potential to fill the gap.
Russia and China have been expanding their influence across Africa since the 2010s and have made significant progress in that time, the newspaper stressed, adding that with the reduction of the US presence, both countries would have a significant advantage in promoting their interests in Africa. As an example, the newspaper referenced the recent shipment of boxes of drugs for tuberculosis and HIV to the Central African Republic, which local authorities linked to the void created by the uncertainty of US funding.
The same applies to the information agenda, The Washington Post wrote. The signing by US President Donald Trump of an executive order to significantly reduce the scope of the US government's Agency for Global Media on March 14 led to the virtual shutdown of the Voice of America radio station (recognized as a foreign media agent in Russia, included in the register of undesirable organizations). Because of this, Russia and China would be able to more effectively promote their own media projects on the continent, which would get an opportunity to broadcast narratives unfavorable of Washington, the newspaper emphasized.
Immediately after the inauguration of the US president on January 20, the US authorities began a large-scale audit of spending from the country's budget. According to statements by American entrepreneur Elon Musk, who oversees the the Department of Government Efficiency, the US authorities expect to cut government spending by $2 trillion.