Contemporary French Security Policy in Africa: On Ideas and Wars (The Sciences Po Series in International Relations and Political Economy)

"Erforth makes a notable contribution to our understanding of foreign policy decision-making. He convincingly demonstrates that French interventions in Mali and the Central African Republic were the result of competition among actors with different mental maps and belief systems." --Richard N. Lebow, FBA, Professor of International Political Theory, King's College London, UK "Erforth spins a fascinating tale of François Hollande's interventions in Mali and CAR. He shows how simultaneous attention to both process and ideation can aid theoretical development in Foreign Policy Analysis." --Valerie M. Hudson, Professor of Political Science, Texas A&M University, USA "The book makes an important and innovative contribution not only to the policy-making processes that led to these two operations, but more broadly to our understanding of recent developments in French African policy." --Tony Chafer, Professor of French and African Studies, University of Portsmouth, UK Despite efforts to normalize its post-colonial relationship and the downsizing of its permanent military presence, France remains a sought-after security provider in Africa. This book uncovers individual and collective motivations that drive French foreign and security policy in Africa. It explains French interventionism by drawing on actors' subjective perceptions of reality and seeks to answer why French decision-makers are ready to accept the considerable risks and costs involved in guaranteeing the security of African countries. Adopting an actor-centric constructivist ontology, the author traces the emergence and subsequent development of ideas throughout the decision-making processes that led to Operation Serval in Mali and Operation Sangaris in the Central African Republic. Benedikt Erforth holds a PhD in International Studies from the University of Trento and has taught international relations and EU politics at Sciences Po Paris, France Preface 6 Acknowledgments 8 Contents 10 Abbreviations 12 List of Figures 15 List of Tables 16 Chapter 1: Introduction: France’s New Interventionism in Africa 19 Chapter 2: Ever Just the Same? French Foreign and Security Policy in Africa 27 Between Grandeur and Decline 28 The Evolution of French Foreign Policy in Africa 31 Stability in Africa: A Multilateral Affair? 37 Chapter 3: Agents, Structures, and Ideas 42 The Decision-Making Process 45 Actors and Mental Maps 45 Political Culture 48 Crisis Situations, Threat Perception, and Securitization 51 A Definition of Agency 52 French Foreign Policy-Makers 52 The President and Presidential Advisors 53 The President’s Ministers 58 Crisis Management: An Interactionist Scheme of Decision-Making 61 Conclusion 66 Chapter 4: Securitizing Mali: No Free Ride for Terrorists in Francophone Africa 68 Mali, Scene of a Long-Lasting Crisis 70 Socio-Economic and Political Factors 70 The Tuareg Insurgency and Its Aftermath 72 Islamist Extremists and Organized Crime 74 The French Decision-Making Process 77 The Inclusion of the Malian Crisis on the Security Agenda: The Four Dimensions of Proximity 79 Temporal Proximity 79 Cultural Proximity 82 Geographic and Human Proximity 84 The Military Experience and Expertise 87 Framing and Diffusion 90 The Definition of the Enemy 93 A Threat to Europe? 97 Africanization of Africa’s Security 101 The Decision to Intervene 105 Elements of Justification 107 If All Else Fails, France Will Take the Lead 111 The Conceptual Maps Behind the Decision 117 Conclusion: The Fight Among Principles 125 Chapter 5: Avoiding a Second Rwanda: Peacekeeping in the Central African Republic 128 The Central African Republic: A Crisis-Ridden Phantom State 130 Toward the Abyss 131 The Role of Religion: Fact or Fiction? 133 The French Army in the Central African Republic 135 The French Decision-Making Process 137 In the Shadows of Serval: The Inclusion of the Central African Crisis on the Security Agenda 138 The Reluctant Interveners 141 The Four Dimensions of Proximity Revisited 147 Framing and Diffusion 153 The Forgotten Orphan 155 The Lessons from Rwanda 159 Preventing Genocide or Fighting Terrorism? 162 The Decision to Intervene 168 The Intervention that Was None 169 Capacity Obliges: Honor, Standing, and Intervention 173 The Prevented Genocide and the Power of Counterfactuals 178 Conclusion: Serval Bis Repetita 182 Chapter 6: After the Storm 186 “Cheese-Eating Warriors” 186 “It’s the Process Stupid!” ... and Ideas 192 “Making War and Waging Peace”: On Terrorism and Humanitarianism 195 Appendix A: Iconography of the French Decision-Making Apparatus in Defense Matters 199 Appendix B: Military Operations in the Central African Republic with French Troop Involvement 201 References 203 Index 231 "Erforth makes a notable contribution to our understanding of foreign policy decision-making. He convincingly demonstrates that French interventions in Mali and the Central African Republic were the result of competition among actors with different mental maps and belief systems." --Richard N. Lebow, FBA, Professor of International Political Theory, King's College London, UK "Erforth spins a fascinating tale of François Hollande's interventions in Mali and CAR. He shows how simultaneous attention to both process and ideation can aid theoretical development in Foreign Policy Analysis." --Valerie M. Hudson, Professor of Political Science, Texas A&M University, USA "The book makes an important and innovative contribution not only to the policy-making processes that led to these two operations, but more broadly to our understanding of recent developments in French African policy." --Tony Chafer, Professor of French and African Studies, University of Portsmouth, UK Despite efforts to normalize its post-colonial relationship and the downsizing of its permanent military presence, France remains a sought-after security provider in Africa. This book uncovers individual and collective motivations that drive French foreign and security policy in Africa. It explains French interventionism by drawing on actors' subjective perceptions of reality and seeks to answer why French decision-makers are ready to accept the considerable risks and costs involved in guaranteeing the security of African countries. Adopting an actor-centric constructivist ontology, the author traces the emergence and subsequent development of ideas throughout the decision-making processes that led to Operation Serval in Mali and Operation Sangaris in the Central African Republic. Benedikt Erforth holds a PhD in International Studies from the University of Trento and has taught international relations and EU politics at Sciences Po Paris, France Despite efforts to normalize its post-colonial relationship and a considerable downsizing of its permanent military presence, France remains a sought-after security provider in Africa. This book uncovers individual and collective motivations that drive French foreign and security policy in Africa. It explains French interventionism by drawing on actors' subjective perceptions of reality and seeks to answer why French decision-makers are ready to accept the considerable risks and costs involved in guaranteeing or re-establishing the security of African countries. Adopting an actor-centric constructivist ontology, the author not only identifies ideas as core explanatory variables but also traces their emergence and subsequent development throughout the decision-making processes that led to Operation Serval in Mali and Operation Sangaris in the Central African Republic. Front Matter ....Pages i-xx Introduction: France’s New Interventionism in Africa (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 1-8 Ever Just the Same? French Foreign and Security Policy in Africa (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 9-23 Agents, Structures, and Ideas (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 25-50 Securitizing Mali: No Free Ride for Terrorists in Francophone Africa (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 51-110 Avoiding a Second Rwanda: Peacekeeping in the Central African Republic (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 111-168 After the Storm (Benedikt Erforth)....Pages 169-181 Back Matter ....Pages 183-218