Filippov V.R. The role of Paris in the Congolese drama

Abstract: Using the method of historical reconstruction, the author explains the causes and the nature of the latent civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire) - one of the longest and the bloodiest conflicts on the continent for the entire post-colonial period. The comprehensive analysis of the little-known historical sources (memoirs of participants of the events, investigative journalism, evidence of well-known politicians and diplomats) allows finding out the motives and the goals of all parties to the conflict in the domestic and international opposition. Particular attention is drawn to the role of France, Belgium and the United States in the unleashing of a civil war in the Congo (Zaire), as well as to the specific manifestations of the "Françafrique" geopolitical doctrine in this confrontation. The author shows the close connection between the events in the Republic of the Congo and the genocide of the Tutsis sociolinguistic groups in Rwanda. The author concludes that the Fifth Republic has for long supported the regime of the Congolese dictator Mobutu, providing it with political cover, ensuring financial assistance and, if necessary, protecting the odious policies in order to maintain economic and political preferences of Paris in this region rich in uranium, copper, coltan. The author believes that the Congolese war was a clear indication of the struggle for the redistribution of the spheres of influence in Africa between the old and the new actors of international relations.

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