CONTRIBUTION TO NIE ON TROPICAL AFRICA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79R01012A008200020030-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 23, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 6, 2014
• Sequence Number: 30
• Publication Date: February 29, 1956
• Content Type: CABLE

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Contributionto I on Tropical iLfrida
The 1953 tir, on Tropical Africa is not avaU.able at thia EmbaseY. Howeverg U9
have reviewed with great interest El 7103 "Africa p A 4ecial essment which we
Consider .,to be an excellent and comprehen;.3ive are is of. 'developing trends in this
part of the.worlde
The kiabassy not able to comment pecificalliy on t q:utionsraised in the ,
reference ,.teleram. However, it has referred in seiveral despatches during 1955 and
1956 .to Efgptian aspirations in Africa.'h? The extent to Ilhich the aspirations, are
.achieved, pa-rticularly if opposition from the Free borld leads to the direct or,
indirect support of tgypt by the Soviet Uniong will have an important bearing on
the Free*.;--;orld position in Tropical i;frica.
,Uap 4 pf nAfrica:. A Special Assessment" drameticafly presents the growing march
of Islata ,across the 'Sahara and into the northern ports of et Africa9 while at the
same time serving .as a reminder of the long stunding 1,Cos1em influence. in Easi. Africa.
This ,mep suggests one method by which i...;gypt hopes to exert its influex3ee in the
African continent. Initially9 ? of course. Egypt is primarily cOnCerned in establishing
close relationships with its neighbors, Libya and the Sudan. Through these countries
the Egyptians hope to expand their interests in the -direction of the Indian Ocean and
across the Sahara .to the ideslems of Nigeria and adjacent French areas,
Vie- are not Competent to judge here the degroe of receptiveness which ,may be
found in the Moslem populations of these areas to Egyptian influence. In British
East Africa perhaps the mik:jority of Loslems are supporters of the Aga 'Flan and so -
long as his influence is maintained 9 they could' be expected to side -with proWestern
e3.ements including the British authoriti6s. ,In Ligeria we have the impression that
the.Moslera elements represent the more qpjaservative and tribal facets of society.
which we wonid think would find little to appeal to them ua the secular and cen-
tralized Egyptian governmental system.
18999 APril 49'1955
20789 May 79 1955
21519 May 18, 1955
22509 .Inne.99 '1955
' 739 juaY 159 1955
86, July 18-9 1955
959 July- 209 1955
979 July 209 1955
1369 August 39 1955
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223 9 August 229:1955
5889 November 269,1955 ?
6469 December 129 1955
722g january Z. 956
7489 January 19,19%
824i FelFw.arY
Review of this document by ?CIA las
Idetermined that ,
1 CIA has no objection to declass
1:1 It conlains iniormatien of CIA
interest that must remain
classified at IS S
It c?ntthiis ngitti
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? Therefore, we ahould not exclude the possibility that EgyPt may well pref,
to enpand its influence in -Africa by seeking to collaborate/Oth noneMosIam
groups on th basis of anti-colonialism, supporting extreie Miomaiiam wherever
it is found, whether in African,. Indian or other communities, For exampl 9 such
attention as Egypt has paid to Kenya has indicated tineetdameaupport of Maueilau
rather than solidity with East African Moslem elements. Efeeptian taetics in the
various areas of tropical Africa would, therefore, probably-be varied to meet the
cimumstances, Collaboration with Moslem elemanta would SOS3 more likely inIest
Africa where the Moslem population is politically important than in British East
Africa where it is less significant.
However, such problems do not arise in solidly Moslem areas like Somalia
which, as it comes nearer to independence, can be expected to be the primary
? center, of Egyptian activity. in "Tropical Africa" apart from the Sudane
?Egyptian aspirations in Africa are of course much larger than Egyptian
capabilities, The latter would seem to depend not oyuly on Egyptian tactics but
on local conditlot including the attitude of the colonial powareg and on th
kind of support which Egypt receives from the Soviet Union and the United States,
Most important is the strength of local Nationalist movements and the extent to
111210h they are opposed by colonial elementee The chances for the extension of
'Egyptian, sponsored antieWestern sentiments would seem least probable in areas
where a strong local Nationalist movement is able to stand on its own feet and
'to develop successfully in collaboration with the colonial powers its own program
for national independence, In such a situation there would be relatively little
attraction to Egyptian "liberation" slogans, although it may be expected that Egypt
would seek to orient such movements toeards Cairo as part of a loose "African
? bloc". On the other hand in areas where the colonial power resists nationalism,
the local national movement could be expected to welcome Egyptian support, in
such a case it must be presumed that the Soviets will seek to pork withEgypt?to
take advantage of the resulting situation. This is not to eey that the Egiptians,
would openly invite communist support If ho ever Egypt does decide to intervene
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in an areS in support of local nationalism and against the colonial powers, Egypt
cannot be expected to objeet to Soviet assistance unless it be conclusively shown
that such support is not ne4eSeary to the achievement of national independence for
the arca in question or that it would in some other way be contrary to the interests
of Egypt to accept ite
This point has been discussed to SOMG extent in the Em say Despatch 748 of
January 119 1969 in which it was suggested that it might be useful for the United
States and Egypt to "collaborate" in Africa as a means of pointing out the advane
tages to Egypt of "liberation" by "moderate" means, thus substituting the United
states for the USSR as the leading "antiecolonial" big pow
This despatch has not attempted to review the reasons for Egypt. imterests
in Africa which are already well known, nor, has it discussed the question of timing.
On the latter point, as was noted in Despatch 7489 Egypt is at the moment primarily
concerned with developments in the Near East, Its stive interest in Africa is
primarily concentrated on the achievement of a Nile waters agreement with the
Sudan, and secondarily on Arab North Africa, When and if, however, the situation
&MET
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in the Near East becomea stabilizedo and Egypt can. feel that .:itrear' is sea=
and that it can be assured of solid Arab league supporto it can anticipated
that Egypt? s i.nterest jj tropical Africa will rise:sharply . In the meantime9 we
think that the respective NM should give particular attention to anticipating a
more active Egyptian role. in African affairs and td consideration of how this
intereat can be ocaptur by the West. The alternative may well be an increase
in anti-Weaternism in tropieal Africa by means'mutli more difficult to combat than
would Otherwise be the case, in our jud eats, a twat of this thesis may
forthcoming before long in Sudan and Somaliao where the West may be forced into
positibn where its ?interests in Ethiopia and the British position in East Africa
are directly challenged by Egypt and the other Arab States and probably by the
Soviet `Dam as well in the interests a? ?a Greater Somalia ultimately African
political supremacy in British East Africa as a Whole.
FOR TBE AMBASSADCas
Peter R. Cha
?Second Secretary of Embassy
? Copy to
London
Paris_
Marto=
Addis
Asmara'
Nairobi
Dar as Salaam
Lagos
Accra
Dakar
Monrovia
sEzRzr
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