Few days after the visit of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Africa, the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken will next week travel to East Asia and Africa next week seeking to counter the influence of Russia and China in a fight for global influence.
While in Africa, he is expected to visit South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, each of which which the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee say is a “significant player on the continent and on the globe.”
The visit by Blinken is part of the U.S. view that “African countries are geostrategic players and critical partners on the most pressing issues of our day,” according to a State Department release
USAID chief Samantha Power recently visited Kenya and Somalia, and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield is planning to travel next month to Ghana and Uganda.
At the intercontinental trip which commences Tuesday, Blinken will also tour Cambodia, the Philippines.
During his first stop in Cambodia, he will attend a Southeast Asian regional security forum where both the Russian and Chinese foreign ministers are expected to be in attendance.
When asked if Blinken would hold direct meetings with either Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov or Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink said there were no plans for formal meetings at this time.
During a briefing with reporters about Blinken’s trip, Kritenbrink did not rule out the possibility of an informal conversation between Blinken and Wang on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum in Cambodia.
Blinken spoke to Lavrov on Friday in the first conversation between the high-level officials since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February.
Blinken pressed Lavrov to accept a U.S. proposal to secure the release of two Americans detained in Russia —professional basketball star Brittney Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan.
The State Department said in a statement Friday that Blinken will address the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, Myanmar and the war in Ukraine during the ASEAN ministers meeting.
Kritenbrink said Blinken would urge Asian nations to increase pressure on Myanmar after its government executed four activists this week.
“This is just the latest example of the regime’s brutality,” he said.
While in the Philippines, the secretary’s next stop, Kritenbrink said Blinken would reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the two countries’ mutual defense treaty, which he called “ironclad.”
Blinken then travels to Africa, part of an increased U.S. diplomatic effort in the region that follows Russia’s outreach to the continent.
The secretary will deliver a speech on U.S. strategy toward sub-Saharan Africa while in South Africa.
Russia’s war in Ukraine is expected to be a major focus during Blinken’s stops in Africa.
Russia’s Lavrov this week wrapped up a tour of four African nations to strengthen ties with the continent and seek support against Western pressure over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
