France is one of the European states that has maintained the strongest ties with its former colonial empire through a substantial presence in all those areas of Africa over which its economic interests are present. In the so-called Françafrique, the transalpine cousins have continued in an indirect form to manage power and the economy through collaborative relationships with some African governments.
This connection with former colonies and the flow of regular and irregular migrations have woven on French territory a network of Muslim organizations that in the overall framework of internal security today pose a very high risk of the spread of radicalization and Islamist-motivated terrorism.
While everyone was distracted by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, France was losing its influence in the Sahel, overwhelmed by a growing Russian paramilitary presence and the spread of anti-French and anti-colonial propaganda. Stabilization missions were leaving African territory at the request of local governments, and while coup-makers in the new governments intimated with ultimatums to the French to abandon their bases, the Russian Wagner Company expanded its area of control and collaboration with local armed forces.
Debacle in the Sahel
After the withdrawal of troops from Mali and Burkina Faso, France had to abandon bases deployed in Niger. The picture that emerges is that of a deep wound in the Western strategic arrangement, not just French, in favor of replacement by other powers in Africa. The African states that have chosen to take advantage of the paramilitary support provided by the Wagner group in territorial control operations and counterterrorism actions have shown an approach far removed from that required by Western partners in the area of respect for human rights. Rampant corruption and indiscriminate violence have fostered refugee flows to the Mediterranean, facilitating the migratory carnage that was predictable and has been instrumental in increasing the climate of insecurity and social pressure for the West.
In March 2024, Niger also intimated to the U.S. government to vacate bases in the African state's territory by facilitating the settlement of personnel from Russia's "Africa Corps" group, a new partner of the Niamey government, and a paramilitary force in the dark continent that replaced Wagner Company.
A model not to be emulated
The strengthening of the Russian and Chinese presence in Africa has produced a redefinition of international relations by African states with Western powers. France certainly turns out to be the European power that has suffered the greatest loss of influence in African territory.
While across the Mediterranean the French government was witnessing a loss of control in its areas of influence, things are no better at home.
The model of integration undertaken by Paris and assimilationist multiculturalism has led the French to face terrorist threats, bomb alarms, riots in the suburbs, and knife attacks, including by isolated elements who have often engaged in extreme acts of violence. The growing spiral of hatred toward the West, amplified by the conflict between Israel and Hamas, has produced a "French question" that has resulted in episodes of intolerance toward the white man that have not been adequately discussed in Western living rooms.
The challenge of safeguarding national identity
What is happening in France should be considered with the eye of one who, while observing his neighbor, also looks in his own house. Questioning the extent to which our reception model has led the country toward a high risk of radicalization and how ready the security branch can be described as to meet the challenge against terrorism and possible uprisings by communities settled in many of our cities. We have witnessed a dangerous escalation that must push all European governments to use those thousands of reports produced by analysts around the world, reports that often remain the preserve of academics and a few insiders, to plan a long-term strategy capable of changing a clear and dramatic trend that is making European states weaker and weaker in their identity.
What concrete actions will have to be put in place to minimize the impact of immigration on the national territory and change the current scenario of many urban realities? From these kinds of questions starts the real challenge to be won on behalf of the citizen who now often feels like a guest in his own home, forced into a frustrating tolerance that generates feelings of abandonment.
Giving quick answers to questions such as these will serve to return control to Italians of their territory, Territory of which a state, by definition, should possess sovereignty and within which citizens should be free to be able to protect their national identity.
A graduate in Political Science and International Relations from Niccolò Cusano University, she is currently attending the Master's Degree in Middle East Analyst at the same university. She has taken various in-depth courses on Sub-Saharan Africa and international terrorism.
Italiano 
English
Il Piano Mattei, proposto dal Governo italiano, mira a rafforzare il dialogo tra l’Europa e l’Africa. Il piano si concentra sullo sviluppo economico che prevede investimenti in infrastrutture, agricoltura, industria e tecnologie da realizzare in Africa utilizzando i fondi dell’Unione Europea per la cooperazione e lo sviluppo già disponibili. Il piano, inoltre, focalizza l’attenzione sulla necessità di aumentare la sicurezza, prevedendo la cooperazione in materia di sicurezza, lotta al terrorismo e criminalità organizzata. Punta, infine, a valorizzare la cultura e la società civile nei paesi africani, attraverso la promozione della comprensione e del rispetto reciproco tra la cultura europea e quella africana.
Fino ad oggi la Francia è stata tra quelli che hanno frenato su questa proposta italiana.
Bene fa la Premier Meloni ad insistere su questa proposta concreta che può realmente migliorare la situazione in Africa, superando il fallimentare colonialismo francese e mitigando la supremazia economica cinese in Africa.