The coronavirus pandemic has given an edge to terrorists in the Sahel region of Africa, the commander of U.S. Army Africa told the Washington Examiner in an exclusive interview.
“In the Sahel, the forces that the countries are using to fight terrorism are now having to be used for some domestic requirements,” said Maj. Gen. Andrew Rohling by phone from U.S. Army Africa headquarters in Vicenza, Italy.
“That’s going to reduce their abilities to fight the terrorist threats,” he added.
Al Qaeda and Islamic State-affiliated terrorist groups roam the vast Sahel region of North and West Africa, drawing recruits from far-flung populations and targeting local militaries with roadside bombs and brazen attacks.
Each year, U.S. Army Africa helps train up local militaries to fight the terrorists on their home turf. But COVID has canceled that effort, Rohling said.
“The U.S. Army soldiers in Africa remain a small investment for a large impact,” he added. “That makes a real difference in Africa, and it basically serves as a basic security assurance for America.”
Rohling took command July 15 but has yet to set foot on the African continent due to COVID travel restrictions. Those travel restrictions have been imposed by some of the countries most affected by terrorist groups, requiring U.S. Army Africa to reorient its efforts.
The Army commander highlighted what in-person training can do for a country battling terrorists who have aims to strike the American homeland.
“The Chad Armed Forces now have built the capacity to independently train and institutionalize tactical combat care for their own military,” he said of a Sahel country that participated in tactical combat casualty care training in September 2019.
Chad also hosts some 5,200 French troops under Operation Barkhane.
In addition to medical training, counter-improvised explosive device and logistics training equip African militaries to fight terrorists.
Rohling said America’s effort is closely coordinated with the French and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, which trains up fighting forces across the region.
“[U.S. Army Africa] provided the training, so not only Chad but multiple countries that contribute forces to the United Nations,” he said. “How does that translate into actual combat activities? Those MINUSMA forces then do direct fighting with the terrorists.”
Since March, hundreds of training exercises to equip the militaries of the Sahel nations of Chad, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, and Niger have been canceled.
Some 443 planned American security cooperation events across the African content were whittled down to just 85 before COVID hit the continent in March.
In Mali, an epicenter for Islamic State recruitment and fundraising, an additional factor has complicated the efforts.
An August military mutiny overthrew the civilian government. That triggered limitations on how the United States Department of Defense can cooperate.
“The ability to do direct military training with Mali, based on that, has been curtailed,” said Rohling. “We’re working within the confines of what’s legal and not legal to keep that region as safe as we can.”
Rohling said that means continued intelligence sharing across the Sahel and coordination with the French.
The Army commander indicated there have been positive signs in Mali, with the U.S.-trained military leader, Assimi Goita, reaching out to the Economic Community of West African States.
A transition back to a civilian government would reopen cooperative efforts.
“They’re making some progress, I guess, is the best way to put it,” said Rohling.
‘Few troops and a few dollars’
The Army’s efforts on the continent fall under the beleaguered U.S. Africa Command, a target of DOD budget cuts and President Trump’s goal to reduce the U.S. troop presence in Germany, which includes a plan to relocate the command headquarters.
Uncertainty about the command’s budget, the first to undergo a “blank slate review” by the secretary of defense, leaves future programming in question as the department reorients its combatant commands to counter great power competition globally.
“We’re on the emerging front of global power competition,” said Rohling. “We’re continuing to build those partnerships with small investments, with few troops and few dollars.”
Before COVID struck, U.S. Army Africa conducted security training events across the continent. In the Sahel alone, six events were conducted in Niger, five in Chad, and one in Burkina Faso.
In the Maghreb, where Secretary Esper visited in September and October, and relations are strong, U.S. Army Africa conducted six events in Morocco, one in Algeria, and 20 in Tunisia.
In the area surrounding Somalia, where the terrorist group al Shabab is active and has spilled across borders, U.S. Army Africa has worked to shore up partner militaries preventing territorial expansion. The effort included four training exercises in Kenya, four in Ethiopia, four in Djibouti, and one in Somalia.
Rohling emphasized that he has seen no intelligence to indicate that COVID is helping terrorists, but it is hurting America’s efforts to degrade terrorist groups in Africa.
“I wouldn’t say that COVID has made it 100% easier for them because they’re affected by COVID as well,” he said. “I don’t think we’ve seen anything that says that COVID is giving them free rein.”
To keep up his connections with military leaders, Rohling said he has had more than a dozen video teleconferences,and he is eager to travel again when country restrictions lift.
Even with current COVID restrictions in place, Army Africa is pivoting to the more permissive countries, making plans for exercises in 2021 in countries that will allow the U.S. military to enter.
Not so next year, the Army commander said.
“We’re ready,” he said. “Depending on what level of COVID, where, and when, and the hotspots, we can do parts and pieces to get something accomplished.”
He added: “We will get training both for African countries and for ourselves out of it, regardless of the COVID situation.”
