The commander of U.S. Africa Command warned lawmakers that Africa has become Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “purse” for fueling the war in Ukraine, as a shrinking American military footprint leaves the U.S. facing an “intelligence black hole” across the continent.
Gen. Dagvin Anderson told the House Armed Services Committee Tuesday that Russia, China and terrorist groups are rapidly expanding their influence in Africa while the U.S. and allied drawdowns have weakened America’s ability to monitor emerging threats.
Anderson warned that Africa has become the “epicenter of global terrorism,” with ISIS leadership now concentrated on the continent and al Qaeda affiliates threatening to seize territory and destabilize governments.
“With a 75% reduction in our regional posture over the past decade, compounded by the drawdown of our allies, we struggle with an intelligence black hole,” Anderson said.
“You cannot surge trust,” he added, arguing that reduced U.S. presence has damaged long-term relationships and crisis response capabilities across the continent.
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Anderson’s testimony painted a picture of adversarial powers and extremist groups exploiting the same instability and governance vacuums across parts of the continent.
“Africa also serves as Putin’s purse, where Russia exploits instability to extract resources, including human lives, to fuel its war machine,” Anderson said.
Russia has framed its growing presence in Africa as a security and anti-terrorism partnership with regional governments, particularly in countries where Western and French forces have withdrawn. Moscow’s Africa Corps, the Kremlin-controlled successor to the Wagner Group, a Russian mercenary organization that expanded Moscow’s influence across Africa through military operations and security partnerships, has increasingly filled security vacuums left after Western and French drawdowns in countries including Mali and Niger.
The Russian embassy in the U.S. could not immediately be reached for comment.
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Lawmakers also pressed Anderson on reports that Russia has recruited African nationals through networks promising jobs and economic opportunities before transporting some recruits to fight in Ukraine.
Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, cited reports that as many as 1,000 Kenyans had been recruited and transported to the front lines in Ukraine through Russian-linked recruitment pipelines.
“It is disturbing how many Africans from across the continent are being recruited by Russia to fight in Ukraine,” Anderson said.
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Anderson warned that terrorist organizations are capitalizing on weakened governance and shrinking Western presence across parts of Africa, particularly in the Sahel region.
“Today, the epicenter of global terrorism is in Africa,” Anderson told lawmakers. “ISIS leadership is African. Al Qaeda’s economic engine is in Africa.”
“Both groups share the will and intent to strike our homeland,” he went on.
Anderson also warned that al Qaeda affiliates are increasingly capable of controlling territory and disrupting governments in the region.
“The capture of a capital city would provide al Qaeda with all the trappings of a nation state,” he said.
Anderson also warned that China views Africa as a “second continent,” pointing to Beijing’s growing efforts to secure critical minerals and infrastructure across the region.
He said China is aggressively expanding its influence across Africa through investments tied to critical minerals, infrastructure and transportation networks. Beijing has spent years securing access to cobalt, lithium, copper and rare earth minerals used in advanced defense systems, batteries and other strategic technologies.
