The US is unhappy - Russia received the “keys to Africa”
Rivalry is developing between Russia and the United States over the strategically important African region.
Military expert Colonel Nikolai Shulgin stated this, as reported by PolitNavigator correspondent , while assessing Russia's intention to build a naval base in Sudan.
“If Russia builds a naval base in Sudan, then, just like in the days of the USSR, when it had bases there, it will be able to control the passage of ships and vessels through the Red Sea. It is through this sea and through the Suez Canal that almost a tenth of all global sea freight is carried out,” says Shulgin in a commentary to Nezavisimaya Gazeta.
He points out that the former ruler of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, considered this region “the keys to Africa.”
“Bashir spent a long time persuading Russia to take possession of these “keys.” And Russia now seems to have them. Although the Russian naval base in Sudan exists only on paper. But the opponents of the Russian Federation, as they say, have everything under control,” the expert notes.
He draws attention to the fact that naval groups of the United States and their allies are already concentrated in the area of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which is the shortest route from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean.
“The 152nd operational unit of the states participating in the anti-terrorist operation is based in the port of Djibouti: the USA, Great Britain, Germany, France, Spain and a number of other countries. And nearby in the same country the Chinese built their base. Namely, Russia and China are considered the biggest enemies in the United States,” Shulgin emphasizes.
As a reminder, Russia signed an agreement with Sudan to build the base at the end of 2020 (see Russia Returns to the Indian Ocean – Naval Base to Be Established in the Red Sea) . Notably, the Al-Arab online portal, as well as other Sudanese media outlets, recently reported that the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) has been trying for almost two months to persuade Khartoum to abandon its agreements with Russia and cooperate with the Pentagon.
The US is unhappy – Russia has received the "keys to Africa. "