Turkey’s increased expansion into Africa is a component of Erdoğan’s big-picture foreign policy agenda, often characterized as Neo-Ottoman, to take Turkey closer to the status of global power.
Despite the brief notoriety of U.S. special operations activities after the tragic ambush in Niger last October, U.S. strategic priorities in Africa remain inscrutable. For a recent example of the administration’s enigmatic approach to the continent, look in turn at the Africa sections in the National Security Strategy (NSS) and the National Defense Strategy (NDS). You will find a curious disconnect.