What’s the
best way to make friends and influence people, especially if they’re leaders of
countries?
If you’re Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, the answer is
simply: sell them weapons.
On Nov. 25, the president of Chad, Idriss Déby, visited Israel. A poor,
corrupt country in the Sahel region of Africa, it is plagued by political
violence and ranks very high on the failed-state index.
Déby has dealt with rebellions and coups d’état attempts since he first
became president in 1990. So Chad has little to contribute to Israel -- except
on the diplomatic front.
Some 13.5 million people live in Chad, 55 per cent of whom
are Muslim. In 1972 it severed ties with Israel under pressure from Saudi Arabia,
Libya and other Arab countries in order to isolate Israel.
Déby was highly influenced by former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi,
who had treated Chad like his country’s personal backyard and a center
from which to expand Libya’s influence throughout Africa. But that
has all ended, of course.
Netanyahu is trying to move into the breach: in exchange
for Israeli military technology, he can get excellent media exposure. Exporting
arms and cyber weaponry to rulers like Déby, plus waging public relations campaigns
on their behalf, equals highly publicized visits to Israel.
The prime minister described the visit in the context of his attempt to
re-establish an Israeli presence in Africa. Noting that in the past two years
he had paid three visits to states on the continent, Netanyahu told Déby
that “I hope to come to the center of Africa.
“And I wish to bring with me Israeli entrepreneurs, Israeli
experts, Israeli companies, everything that can improve the life of the peoples
of Africa, which is something we believe in. Israel is coming back to Africa,
Africa is coming back to Israel.”
But the real reason for the visit dealt with arms sales and the fight
against Islamists. A secret meeting in New York at the end of September,
between Foreign Minister Mahamat Zene Cherif of Chad and Israel’s national
security adviser Meir Ben Shabbat, set the stage for Déby’s formal visit.
So the visit was really focused on security and skirted
around Chad’s less than stellar record in the realm of human rights. Chadian
authorities have banned peaceful assemblies and arrested and prosecuted
activists and journalists.
In April Chad’s parliament approved a new constitution that
expanded Déby’s powers and could allow him to serve until 2033.
Israel has supported the Chadian army in the domain of
satellite eavesdropping on rebel groups operating in the north of the country. Part
of its armored equipment was bought from Israel.
Netanyahu wants Israel to be a significant partner in the
African regional coalition against extremist Islamist terrorism. Déby agreed. “We
have a shared struggle,” he said. It’s not nice, but it’s realpolitik.
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