The United States (U.S.) military is backing off its usual talk of good governance and countering insurgencies, telling its fragile allies in Africa they must be ready to stand more on their own.
At African Lion, its largest joint training exercise on the continent, that shift was clear: “We need to be able to get our partners to the level of independent operations,” General Michael Langley said in an interview.
“There needs to be some burden sharing,” Langley, the US military’s top official in Africa, said at the weekend, the final day of the exercise.
For four weeks, troops from more than 40 countries rehearsed how to confront threats by air, land, and sea. They flew drones, simulated close-quarters combat and launched satellite-guided rockets in the desert.
Manoeuvers mirrored previous editions of African Lion, now in its 25th year. But mostly gone now is language that emphasises ideas the U.S. once argued set it apart from Russia and China.
Messaging about the interwoven work of defence, diplomacy and development once formed the core of Washington’s security pitch. In their place now are calls for helping allies build capacity to manage their own security, which Langley said was a priority for President Donald Trump’s Defence Department.
“We have our set priorities now — protecting the homeland. And we’re also looking for other countries to contribute to some of these global instability areas,” he said, referencing U.S. support for Sudan.
The shift comes as the U.S. military makes moves to “build a leaner, more lethal force,” including potentially cutting military leadership positions in places like Africa, where America’s rivals continue to deepen their influence.
China has launched its own expansive training programme for African militaries. Russian mercenaries are recalibrating and cementing their role as security partner of choice throughout North, West and Central Africa.
In an interview a year ago, Langley emphasised what U.S. military officials have long called a “whole of government approach” to countering insurgency. Even amid setbacks, he defended the U.S. approach and said force alone couldn’t stabilise weak states and protect U.S. interests against the risk of violence spilling out.
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“I’ve always professed that AFRICOM is just not a military organisation,” Langley said last year. He called good governance an “enduring solution to a number of layered threats — whether it be desertification, whether it be crop failure from changing environments, or whether it be from violent re of U.S. messaging, though Langley said holistic efforts have worked in places like Ivory Coast, where development and defence had reduced attacks by jihadi groups near its volatile northern border.
But such successes aren’t a pattern. “I’ve seen progression and I’ve seen regression,” said Langley, who is scheduled to exit his post later this year.
The U.S. military’s new posture comes even though many African armies remain ill-equipped and insurgent groups expand.
“We see Africa as the epicentre for both al-Qaida and Islamic State,” a senior U.S. defence official said earlier this month, noting both groups had growing regional affiliates and the Islamic State group had shifted command and control to Africa. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorised to discuss the issue publicly.
Africa has rarely ranked high on the Pentagon’s list of priorities, but the U.S. has still spent hundreds of millions of dollars on security assistance and has roughly 6,500 Africa Command personnel on the continent.
In some regions, the U.S. faces direct competition from Russia and China. In others, regional affiliates of al-Qaida and the IS still require direct military action, Langley said.
The messaging shift from “whole of government” to more burden-sharing comes as fears grow that rising violence could spread beyond hotspots where insurgents have expanded influence and found vacuums in which they can consolidate power.
Parts of both East and West Africa have emerged as epicentres of violence.
In 2024, more than half of the world’s terrorism victims were killed across West Africa’s Sahel, a vast desert territory ruled by military juntas, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace. The group, which compiles yearly terrorism statistics, also found Somalia accounted for six per cent of all terrorism-related deaths, making it the deadliest for terrorism in Africa outside the Sahel.
Since Trump took office, the U.S. military has escalated airstrikes in Somalia, targeting IS and al-Shabab operatives. But despite air support, Somalia’s army remains far from being able to maintain security on the ground, Langley acknowledged.