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Transcript/ScriptPLAYBOOK SLUG: Blinken Africa Wrap (TV) HEADLINE: Blinken Stresses ‘True Partnership’ on Tour of Africa TEASER: The US secretary of state completes a three-nation tour of Africa, saying the Biden administration views countries on the continent as key partners PUBLISHED: 8/11/2022 at 555pm BYLINE: Cindy Saine CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: VIDEOGRAPHER: PRODUCER: SCRIPT EDITORS: caw, Tom Turco VIDEO SOURCE (S): Saine Zoom interviews, AP, AFP, Reuters PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __ TRT: 3:45 VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen TYPE: VPKGN EDITOR NOTES: )) ((INTRO)) [[ U.S. Secretary State Antony Blinken visited Rwanda Thursday, the third and final leg of an Africa tour. At each stop, Blinken stressed that the United States is seeking a true partnership with African countries, supports regional efforts to reduce violence and is not trying to dictate with whom they should form alliances. VOA's senior diplomatic correspondent, Cindy Saine, reports. ]] ((NARRATOR)) Secretary of State Antony Blinken completed his visit to Africa after holding talks Thursday with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in the capital, Kigali. Blinken told reporters he had raised serious concerns about human rights and called for an end to any support for armed rebels in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, or DRC. ((Antony Blinken, Secretary of State)) "There are very credible reports of support for armed groups by all sides, including the FDLR, by Congolese forces and M23, by Rwandans. Our position is clear, whoever it's by, whoever it's to, that support needs to cease for any armed group."
((NARRATOR)) A day earlier in Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC, Blinken voiced those same concerns that Rwanda has provided support to the armed rebel group operating in the east of the DRC, M23. [[Radio Intro: Christophe Lutundula is the Congolese Foreign Minister.]] ((NARRATOR))
The Congolese foreign minister had this to say.
((Christophe Lutundula, Congolese Foreign Minister)) ((male, French -English voiceover needed))
"This bed of the east of our country has been plagued by armed terrorist groups that sow terror, decimating our populations for over 20 years. It was against this backdrop that we had a bilateral exchange." ((NARRATOR)) Secretary Blinken launched his three-nation tour last Sunday in South Africa, paying tribute to the Soweto Uprising, a student protest against the former apartheid regime. Blinken and his South African counterpart, Naledi Pandor, both said they had substantive and honest talks, focusing on common goals and interests. Addressing competition for influence on the continent with China and Russia, Blinken outlined the overarching theme of the trip. ((Antony Blinken, Secretary of State)) "What we seek most of all is a true partnership between the United States and Africa; we don't want an imbalanced or transactional relationship, and our commitment to a stronger partnership with Africa is not about trying to outdo anyone else." ((NARRATOR)) Blinken’s visit follows a tour of Africa by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and one expert told VOA she is not sure that Africans are convinced the U.S. is not still vying for influence on the continent. ((Elizabeth Shackelford, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs))
((Zoom Courtesy))
“I think that it's still coming across that this is all part of a big, great power competition game and that there's a little bit of “FOMO” [fear of missing out] if we aren't going to be there, that we're afraid of missing out on places that Russia and China are both really prioritizing.”
((NARRATOR)) Another expert told VOA he does see a change in tone and approach to Africa from the Biden administration. [[Radio Intro: Tom Sheehy is with the United States Institute of Peace.]]
((Tom Sheehy, United States Institute of Peace)) ((Zoom Courtesy))
“I think the difference here, though, is perhaps, from the previous administration, the [Biden] administration isn't so much interested in telling Africans how they should conduct their business, with whom they should conduct their business. There was a rather pointed edge to the previous administration's message on China.” ((NARRATOR)) Elizabeth Shackelford told VOA she thinks the United States should prioritize African countries such as Kenya, which appears to be moving forward in a democratic direction after elections this week, and she does not feel the U.S. must show up everywhere on the continent to compete with others. Blinken visited Kenya, Nigeria and Senegal last November. ((Cindy Saine, VOA News))
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