Chapter 426: Somali interests are involved

PS: Many people ask, on what grounds did France and Italy enter the war? I didn't say anything before, I can't help but see it!

This chapter has a good explanation.,If you don't like to read it, please skip it.。 The next chapter will be released in the early evening.

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The question of whether or not the war in Somalia will continue, if it were not for the relationship between them and their allies with the United States, would have been put aside long ago.

It is undeniable that this part of Somalia is the traditional circle of power between France and Italy. In the absence of Li Lan, especially Italy, it was particularly useful in Somalia, although many Italians who went to Somalia died in cold shots, but most Somalis still kept a certain distance from Italians and did not invade each other.

A large number of camels and sheep are exported from Somalia to the tables of European aristocratic circles, especially Somalia's famous goat, which is a special black goat in Somalia, and has an extremely strong skill, they can not only walk freely in steep rocks, but also have a unique ability to climb trees. Therefore, the meat quality of Somali black goat is very good, and the price is very expensive in the meat market of the world.

The original export business of camels and goats in Somalia was exclusively operated by Italians, who bought them in Bossaso and sold them to other European countries at a high price, making hundreds of millions of dollars a year. In the case of the most common black goats, the Italian purchase price in Somalia is two or three hundred dollars, and when sold in Europe, each black goat can be sold for two to four thousand dollars. The net profit of a goat is more than 10 times, and in the past, Somalia exported 30,000 or 40,000 black goats every year. There are more than 100,000 heads. And then add to that the operation of camels and camel milk, every year in Italy in terms of livestock. Somalia can earn at least about one billion dollars.

Since Li Lan occupied Bossaso, this business has been cut off in half. Bossaso, Somalia's largest port, has always been the most important acquisition channel for the Italians, and since Awe's death, they have not only lost a partner, but even the roads have been blocked. At the beginning, the Italians did not send someone to discuss the matter with Li Lan, but they were rejected by Farah with a sentence of not exporting livestock for the time being. After that, the Italians were also able to buy livestock only in Berbera and Djibouti, as well as in Mogadishu, for two years. Somali goats in Europe are in short supply, but the Italians really can't find a better way to get them. Although the price of scarce things has risen, the purchase price has also risen, and the actual benefits obtained are still not as much as before.

This makes Italians very tasteful. Of course, this is not the main reason, the Italians still have a lot of interests in Somalia, and the arms business is also a very important income. At the beginning, there was war in Somalia. A lot of Italian arms are invested in the Somali market, and there is a lot of dark income every year. The main point is that the Italians bought a number of oil fields in Somalia and waited for the situation in Somalia to stabilize. Let's develop it again. As a result, it turned out that the Freedom Alliance did not recognize the deal of Italy and other regimes at all. Any announcement of a deal with a previous regime does not count.

This really adds fuel to the fire. The Italian government was furious. Back then, Somalia was an Italian overseas possessions. It is equivalent to the back garden of the Italians, or the strategic location in the Gulf of Aden. National independence is in line with the trend, and the Italians can't stop it, but many of Italy's interests in Somalia have not been lost because of Somalia independence at the beginning. Now, as soon as Li Lan's regime came to power, all of them were vetoed.

Therefore, when the United States came to the door, the Italians agreed to send troops to Somalia together after simply negotiating conditions. It's really because the interests of the Italians involved in it are really difficult to let go.

Now, Italian President Napolitano has regretted that Italy is a non-nuclear country, in a conventional war, the Italian army suffered heavy losses, and the air force is not having a good time, the Italian air force is also involved in skirmishes at the airport, the results are not very good, several pilots became prisoners of the Somali army, and more than a dozen warplanes were shot down. If it weren't for the fact that the navy was in the Mediterranean, I am afraid that even the navy would have to suffer even greater losses like the United States and Japan.

Since the European debt crisis, Italy has been having a hard time, and now it has suffered such huge losses in sending troops to Somalia, which has made the entire Italian people very angry, plus the terrorist attacks that occurred in Europe two days ago, Rome has also been hit by two suicide bombings. Panic has begun in the country, and several flights have been closed for this, leading to numerous protests by a large number of people. In the aftermath of the cyber attack, Italy's economy has been even worse, and the entire country's structure has been shaken.

At this time, Hagel asked how the conventional war would continue, and Napolitano was eager to say it directlyβ€”no more accompaniment. The United States is more than 10,000 kilometers away from Somalia, and Somalia is less than 5,000 kilometers away from Italy, and these 5,000 kilometers still include the entire territory of Italy.

Not to mention that Italy does not have nuclear weapons, and even if it did, it would not go to a nuclear war with a madman.

It's just that the Italian president didn't say his thoughts right away, but looked at French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and he now wants to retreat with France.

Sarkozy is also not easy to make a decision at this time, France does not have much economic interest in Somalia, but it is different around Somalia. Africa has always been France's traditional power circle, and it is still so.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, tensions continued in Somalia, with the French army providing military support to the operations of Somali government forces and launching successive air strikes against former Islamist forces in Somalia. French military bases in Africa played a key role in this overseas military operation.

From the mid-19th century until the end of the Cold War, Africa was seen by France as its "backyard" and "sphere of power". Before the outbreak of World War I, France had 11,755,000 square kilometers of overseas colonies and a colonial population of 41.1 million, most of which were in Africa. Before the outbreak of World War II, nearly half of Africa was a French colony. Even after World War II, the total area of French colonies in Africa was about 10.39 million square kilometers, accounting for 37% of the total area of Africa, and the population accounted for 24.5% of the total population of Africa at that time.

The deployment of military bases was an important means of French control over Africa. After World War II, France successively set up four theaters in North Africa, West Africa, Central Africa and the southern Indian Ocean, established dozens of military bases, and deployed more than 90 army corps, with a total strength of about 60,000 troops. By the end of the twentieth century, France had signed military cooperation agreements with 27 African countries, bringing nearly 40 per cent of Africa under its military influence.

Through many years of operation, France has systematically established a cross-shaped base system connected to the local military base, with N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, as the center, including a series of land, sea and air military bases. The horizontal axis of this cross is the line between Dakar, the capital of Senegal, N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, and Djibouti, the capital of Djibouti. The vertical axis is Algiers, the capital of Algeria, N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, and Brazzaville, the capital of the Congo (Brazzaville). Although some adjustments were made to individual bases later, the overall layout of the cross-shaped military base did not change fundamentally. The presence of these bases allows the French army to project troops anywhere in Africa within 24 hours of the onset of the crisis.

In the 21st century, the political situation in African countries has been generally stable, and the function of France's military bases in Africa has also changed from intervening in African politics to responding to various non-traditional threats, such as fighting terrorism. To this end, France has significantly reduced the number of permanent military bases, instead activating temporary military bases according to the needs of the situation, and flexibly adjusting the number of troops stationed according to the task.

In addition, France has also actively relied on these military bases to carry out multilateral military cooperation with Africa, making African armed forces more dependent on France and making it easier for French troops to be supported by local military strength in Africa. At the same time, France has also changed its mindset to see these bases as public goods for the Western world to promote democracy and values, fight terrorism, and promote global governance, and welcome countries such as the United States and Japan to intervene in African affairs and share security responsibilities. It can be seen that the adjustment of France's military bases in Africa is not like the decline in national strength and seeks to get out of Africa, as some media have analyzed, but hopes to control the areas where its overseas interests are most concentrated at the minimum economic and military cost.

Why does France attach so much importance to military bases in Africa? There are three reasons for this.

First of all, to safeguard economic interests in Africa. Africa's human and economic potential is huge, and in the long run, Africa will play an important role in global economic growth, which is of great significance to France, which has always had "special interests" in Africa.

Second, to promote the French language and culture, and to expand political influence. By establishing military bases, France can maintain its political influence in areas of traditional power in Central Africa, Chad, Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Djibouti, etc.

Third, we need to safeguard security interests. By stationing military bases in Africa, France can prevent other countries from using the continent to deploy offensive forces and pose a threat to France itself. At the same time, most of the military raw materials such as cobalt, uranium, manganese, chromium, and aluminum that France needs come from Africa, and these strategic raw materials are directly related to France's economic lifeline and the research and development of conventional weapons.

The rise of Li Lan in Somalia has broken many of France's military advantages in Africa, and in the face of a rising pro-China force, what France can do is to eliminate hidden dangers as much as possible. Africa's interests are so great that there is only one cake. In recent years, China has vigorously wooed African countries, and polar bears are also going to intervene, which is not a good thing for France. The great potential of the Somali regime today makes France feel that its traditional interests in Africa are under great threat. The French military presence in Djibouti was seriously threatened, and in order to keep the layout of the cruciform military base intact, it was only possible to extinguish the fire of Somalia that had ignited a powerful Somali fire. (To be continued......)