Why Uganda Attracts Bush
Jul 08, 2003
President George Bush is here, giving the country honour and recognition in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Officially the trip is about fighting poverty, disease as well as promoting trade and democracy.
By Patrick Luganda
President George Bush is here, giving the country honour and recognition in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Officially the trip is about fighting poverty, disease as well as promoting trade and democracy.
Several people are scratching their heads wondering how Uganda has made it to the prestigious list beside Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal and Botswana. Uganda is his last stop. There is talk doing the rounds that actually Bush is hear to strike military deals with his friend Museveni and that the disease and poverty drives are just a curtain.
Analysts The New Vision consulted said that there is a connection between the US President’s visit and the security concerns of America.
“When the US government offered three million dollars to fight the insurgency in northern Uganda, it was really meant to fight what they considered as international terrorism and a threat to their security interests. If that insurgency was in another part of the country, it would probably be another story, but the proximity to Southern Sudan and the fact that the rebels crisis-cross the border into Sudan is of concern,†an analyst commented.
In a move to fight the spread of terror in Africa the US government recently committed 100 million dollars towards fighting terrorism, specifically in East Africa.
Other incidents that tend to point at increasing military co-operation are the fact that part of the visit will involve the signing of agreements to allow US fighter planes to refuel in Uganda, when on mission in the region.
President Bush in an interview with African print journalists, before he left Washington hinted at the security concerns in the region.
“Parts of Africa are — they’ve got ongoing terrorist threats. And the good news is we are working closely with those governments to deal with those threats. We’ve got very good intelligence sharing. We are — the law enforcement officials of these countries where there is a direct threat are moving rapidly upon the — when we enrich the intelligence, when we calibrate the intelligence,†said Bush.
Uganda according to political commentators has emerged as one of the most stable countries in the region both politically, militarily and economically. Of recent, Uganda found favour and has overtaken Kenya to become the country of choice as a launching pad against terrorism in the region.
“Kenya is a great country, and it has been a place where there’s been threats. Everybody knows that. Not only threats, there’s been an attack in the past. And the government of Kenya has been very responsive. And we are — we are helping them. We’re helping other countries in Africa. Djibouti comes to mind. There is country after country after country where we’re working with their governments,†said Bush.
The strategic importance of Uganda in security terms has gained prominence over time. It has emerged as an island of relative peace in sea of turmoil or potential threat to burst into confusion.
“Look at the countries in the region. The attacks on Tanzania and Kenya as well as the insecurity in the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Angola makes Uganda an added choice for collaboration,†says our source.
The choice for security collaboration with Uganda is best understood by examining the chain of command of the US armed forces in the region. According to information from the United States Department of Defense, the African continent is arranged in defense areas of Responsibility and is divided between three unified commands. These are EUCOM, CENTCOM and PACOM.
The New Vision has established that Kenya, Sudan, Egypt, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Eritrea and the Seychelles Islands fall under the CENTCOM unified command. This is the central command and is based in Qatar in the Middle East.
On the other hand Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Africa and the rest of the countries on the continent are under the EUCOM unified command. This is the European command based in Germany.
The only the island states of Mauritius, Madagascar and Comoros are under the PACOM unified command. This is the Pacific command. Our sources say that Kenya and the Seychelles are under the command in Qatar because of the relative insecurity that they pause to the US.
“It is important that the US builds military capability in Uganda to be used as a springboard to control military expansionism and terrorism in the region,†says sources.
Already Kenya and Djibouti have a strong US military presence. The increasing number of marines is these countries is said to be in response to new threats of terrorist activity. But both these countries are fall under the CENTCOM command.
The New York Times recent reports indicate that President Bush wants US fighter planes to refuel in Uganda as well as Senegal. Seeking the refuelling agreement is part of a wider strategy to increase American military combat readiness on the continent.
The paper claims that intelligence indicates that centuries-old smuggling routes in North Africa running across the Sahara desert from Mauritania to Sudan are becoming prime areas of terrorist activities including the dreaded Al-Qaeda.
The role of Uganda in a military collaboration would include giving facilities for a rapid reaction capability to terror strikes from the region. Sources say that Gulu, Kasese or Nakasongola would be prime choices for large aircraft and fighter planes.
The choice of Uganda as a candidate collaborating nation in the security strategy is after painful study and information gathering that comes in through official and unofficial sources.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense acknowledges that through the defense office of African Affairs, it interacts with and receives input from a wide range of domestic and international actors in shaping US defense policy.
Through the local contacts it receives information from academicians, the media, and the general public, local industry and locally based non-governmental organisations and community based organisations.
The other informal actors are the United Nations system, International organisations, state government as well as local governments. The other key players are the foreign media, foreign nationals, foreign governments, foreign industry as well as foreign NGOs.
“All of these can influence US defense policy,†says the Department of State information release.
In addition to the information received from these critical influential groups, there are permanent officials located in the embassies with supervisors watching over several countries grouped together.
Officials at the US embassy declined to comment when contacted, but our findings can reveal that the country director of the East African countries is one Captain Pat Jackson. He reports through the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State-African Affairs, a Mr. Bernd McConnel. He in turn reports to the Under-Secretary of Defense in charge of defense policy, Douglas J. Feith.
It is said of Feith: “He is the principal advisor to the Secretary of State for all matters concerning formulation of national security and defense policy and integration and overseeing of the department of defense policy and plans to achieve national security objectives.â€
As per protocol, Feith reports to Paul Wolfowitz who is the Deputy Secretary of Defense. Finally the reports are handed to Donald Rumsfield , the US Secretary of Defense. It is after this intricate exercise that the Commander in Chief and President of the United States President George Bush, would seek to arrive at any agreement with a foreign country like Uganda for the sake of the security interests of the people of America. If Uganda has found favour in the eyes of America, it is because we have no skeletons to hide in the closet. Ends
President George Bush is here, giving the country honour and recognition in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Officially the trip is about fighting poverty, disease as well as promoting trade and democracy.
Several people are scratching their heads wondering how Uganda has made it to the prestigious list beside Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal and Botswana. Uganda is his last stop. There is talk doing the rounds that actually Bush is hear to strike military deals with his friend Museveni and that the disease and poverty drives are just a curtain.
Analysts The New Vision consulted said that there is a connection between the US President’s visit and the security concerns of America.
“When the US government offered three million dollars to fight the insurgency in northern Uganda, it was really meant to fight what they considered as international terrorism and a threat to their security interests. If that insurgency was in another part of the country, it would probably be another story, but the proximity to Southern Sudan and the fact that the rebels crisis-cross the border into Sudan is of concern,†an analyst commented.
In a move to fight the spread of terror in Africa the US government recently committed 100 million dollars towards fighting terrorism, specifically in East Africa.
Other incidents that tend to point at increasing military co-operation are the fact that part of the visit will involve the signing of agreements to allow US fighter planes to refuel in Uganda, when on mission in the region.
President Bush in an interview with African print journalists, before he left Washington hinted at the security concerns in the region.
“Parts of Africa are — they’ve got ongoing terrorist threats. And the good news is we are working closely with those governments to deal with those threats. We’ve got very good intelligence sharing. We are — the law enforcement officials of these countries where there is a direct threat are moving rapidly upon the — when we enrich the intelligence, when we calibrate the intelligence,†said Bush.
Uganda according to political commentators has emerged as one of the most stable countries in the region both politically, militarily and economically. Of recent, Uganda found favour and has overtaken Kenya to become the country of choice as a launching pad against terrorism in the region.
“Kenya is a great country, and it has been a place where there’s been threats. Everybody knows that. Not only threats, there’s been an attack in the past. And the government of Kenya has been very responsive. And we are — we are helping them. We’re helping other countries in Africa. Djibouti comes to mind. There is country after country after country where we’re working with their governments,†said Bush.
The strategic importance of Uganda in security terms has gained prominence over time. It has emerged as an island of relative peace in sea of turmoil or potential threat to burst into confusion.
“Look at the countries in the region. The attacks on Tanzania and Kenya as well as the insecurity in the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Angola makes Uganda an added choice for collaboration,†says our source.
The choice for security collaboration with Uganda is best understood by examining the chain of command of the US armed forces in the region. According to information from the United States Department of Defense, the African continent is arranged in defense areas of Responsibility and is divided between three unified commands. These are EUCOM, CENTCOM and PACOM.
The New Vision has established that Kenya, Sudan, Egypt, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Eritrea and the Seychelles Islands fall under the CENTCOM unified command. This is the central command and is based in Qatar in the Middle East.
On the other hand Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Africa and the rest of the countries on the continent are under the EUCOM unified command. This is the European command based in Germany.
The only the island states of Mauritius, Madagascar and Comoros are under the PACOM unified command. This is the Pacific command. Our sources say that Kenya and the Seychelles are under the command in Qatar because of the relative insecurity that they pause to the US.
“It is important that the US builds military capability in Uganda to be used as a springboard to control military expansionism and terrorism in the region,†says sources.
Already Kenya and Djibouti have a strong US military presence. The increasing number of marines is these countries is said to be in response to new threats of terrorist activity. But both these countries are fall under the CENTCOM command.
The New York Times recent reports indicate that President Bush wants US fighter planes to refuel in Uganda as well as Senegal. Seeking the refuelling agreement is part of a wider strategy to increase American military combat readiness on the continent.
The paper claims that intelligence indicates that centuries-old smuggling routes in North Africa running across the Sahara desert from Mauritania to Sudan are becoming prime areas of terrorist activities including the dreaded Al-Qaeda.
The role of Uganda in a military collaboration would include giving facilities for a rapid reaction capability to terror strikes from the region. Sources say that Gulu, Kasese or Nakasongola would be prime choices for large aircraft and fighter planes.
The choice of Uganda as a candidate collaborating nation in the security strategy is after painful study and information gathering that comes in through official and unofficial sources.
The Office of the Secretary of Defense acknowledges that through the defense office of African Affairs, it interacts with and receives input from a wide range of domestic and international actors in shaping US defense policy.
Through the local contacts it receives information from academicians, the media, and the general public, local industry and locally based non-governmental organisations and community based organisations.
The other informal actors are the United Nations system, International organisations, state government as well as local governments. The other key players are the foreign media, foreign nationals, foreign governments, foreign industry as well as foreign NGOs.
“All of these can influence US defense policy,†says the Department of State information release.
In addition to the information received from these critical influential groups, there are permanent officials located in the embassies with supervisors watching over several countries grouped together.
Officials at the US embassy declined to comment when contacted, but our findings can reveal that the country director of the East African countries is one Captain Pat Jackson. He reports through the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State-African Affairs, a Mr. Bernd McConnel. He in turn reports to the Under-Secretary of Defense in charge of defense policy, Douglas J. Feith.
It is said of Feith: “He is the principal advisor to the Secretary of State for all matters concerning formulation of national security and defense policy and integration and overseeing of the department of defense policy and plans to achieve national security objectives.â€
As per protocol, Feith reports to Paul Wolfowitz who is the Deputy Secretary of Defense. Finally the reports are handed to Donald Rumsfield , the US Secretary of Defense. It is after this intricate exercise that the Commander in Chief and President of the United States President George Bush, would seek to arrive at any agreement with a foreign country like Uganda for the sake of the security interests of the people of America. If Uganda has found favour in the eyes of America, it is because we have no skeletons to hide in the closet. Ends