Foreign Policy Blogs

African Union

U.S.-AU Disconnect on Libya

U.S.-AU Disconnect on Libya

Top officials from the African Union visited Washington last week to discuss relations between the U.S. and the emerging pan-African body. It was the second such meeting, and a joint statement was released outlining the “full range” of U.S.-Africa priorities, including democratic governance, economic development, health and peace and security issues. On democratic governance, always […]

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AU Chairman: ICC Singles Out African Leaders

AU Chairman: ICC Singles Out African Leaders

The African Union Commission Chairman, Jean Ping, yesterday told an audience in Washington that the International Criminal Court continues to target African leaders unfairly, accusing the body of “double standards” as it seeks to try those accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide — most recently in Sudan and Kenya. Noting that atrocities […]

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Webcast Today: AU Chair to Address U.S. Institute of Peace

African Union Chairman Jean Ping will address the U.S. Institute of Peace today following meetings with top officials in Washington.  The address, which is expected to touch on hot button issues like the interventions in Libya and Ivory Coast, elections in Nigeria and U.S.-Africa relations, will be webcast live beginning at 2:00 pm EST.   For […]

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Cote D'Ivoire: Une autre intervention

Cote D'Ivoire: Une autre intervention

Libyan officials aren’t the only ones seeking to defect to neighboring countries these days.  Like the Qadaffi clan in Tripoli, the regime of Cote D’Ivoire’s Laurent Gbagbo has come under international pressure as violence between the incumbent and the opposition escalates.  Top level officials, including the head of the country’s armed forces,  are apparently seeking […]

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AU Mission in Somalia Gets Boost

AU Mission in Somalia Gets Boost

As African Union peacekeepers continue to come under attack in Somalia, the mission there, known as AMISOM, received two pieces of good news this week. First off, Uganda and Burundi, offered to send 4,000 more troops to the mission.  The two countries account for a majority of what will now be a 12,000-strong force aimed […]

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Museveni: Qaddafi Bad, Intervention Worse

Museveni: Qaddafi Bad, Intervention Worse

Despite past disagreements with the Libyan leader over the pace of African integration and the awkward fact that Qaddafi provided support for Uganda’s murderous former leader, Idi Amin, Ugandan President Yoweri Musevini is highly critical of the Western intervention in Libya in an article printed by Foreign Policy magazine.  While Musevini acknowledges some of the […]

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AU, Arab League and EU to meet on Libya

AU, Arab League and EU to meet on Libya

An ad-hoc panel of leaders from African Union countries is set to meet with European Union and Arab League officials tomorrow to discuss the way forward in Libya. The panel, which includes heads of state from South Africa, Uganda, Mali, Mauritania and Congo, along with AU Commission President Jean Ping and current AU Chairman Teodore […]

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Diplomatic Infrastructure Grows for AU

Diplomatic Infrastructure Grows for AU

Recent weeks have seen a flurry of diplomatic activity surrounding the African Union, as the body seeks to establish itself as a major player in resolving challenges facing the continent. Earlier this month, the United States inaugurated its largest embassy in Sub-Saharan Africa in Addis Ababa, which will host both the U.S. mission  to Ethiopia […]

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The African Food Basket

My colleagues over at the Global Food Security blog write today about a new African Union initiative known as the “African Food Basket” that aims to make African countries food secure five years from now.  The author of the post points out that achieving food security has been difficult in recent years, with drought and economic […]

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Cote D'Ivoire chaos marks one month

It’s been a month since the results of the contested November 28th presidential election were announced in Cote D’Ivoire, where things have taken a  turn for the worse over the end-of-year holidays.  As tensions and violence escalate – at least 170 people have been killed so far in post-election violence according to the UN — […]

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Welcome to the African Union blog

Welcome to the African Union blog

Greetings and welcome to the African Union blog.  This blog is being launched in coordination with the publication of the latest of FPA’s Headline Series, backgrounders produced for more than half a century.  “The Quest for African Unity: 50 Years of Independence and Interdependence,” offers a short history of Pan-Africanism and the Organization of African […]

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New Blog Coming Soon

Welcome to the AU blog, the latest addition to the Foreign Policy Blogs network.

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