hey arise. Although U.S. economic and security assistance is aimed at the goal of helping the African nations help themselves, there are cases in which the United States military must intervene for the purposes of crisis response or humanitarian relief.
The Strategy Committee of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (1993) lists four major regional threats to U.S. interests and those of the nation's allies in Sub-Saharan Africa. These are: (1) lack of democracy; (2) abuse of human rights; (3) ethnic or tribal divisions; and (4) faulty governmental policies (p. 58). All of these elements create conditions of instability and thus pose a risk to U.S. interests and objectives in the area. In recent years, traditional tribal divisions within African societies have been an especially potent source of regional conflict. This can be seen, for example, in the situation which is currently taking place in Rwanda. In that tiny nation, hundreds of thousands of innocent people have been massacred as a result of ethnic conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes. The United States and other Western nations seem to be unable to deal effectively with this problem at this time. As Gibbs (1994) points out, the most effective means for dealing with this type is situation is through democratic reform. This is because "where the valves of democracy allow for ethnic pressures to escape, differences are settled by discussion" (p. 63). Thus, the introduction of democratic systems in Sub-Saharan Africa can help prevent the threat of open warfare in the region.
Economic and security assistance is a significant factor in overcoming threats to the attainment of U.S. national interests and objectives in Sub-Saharan Africa. Economic aid helps improve stability by relieving debt, opening new markets, and improving conditions for the African people as a whole. Security assistance, such as the provision of military equipment and training,...