As important as the Middle East has been to the U.S., there is another, far larger area that will continue to grow in importance — Africa. The continent is rich in physical resources: oil, diamonds, gold, silver, and uranium to name a few, and maintains a 54-nation membership in the United Nations. The global say and economic potential of Africa could make it a very enticing prospect to the U.S. and China, whom Donald Trump seems to desire global economic competition with. Competition for Africa’s resources would invariably lead to foreign powers attempting to establish stronger footholds and maintain more physical interests in the continent in the forms of mines or oil rigs. These interests would need protection as they would present an inviting target for terror attacks from groups such as ISIS and Boko Haram, thus opening the door to a fight against terror in Africa. As drawn-out and ineffective as our combat operations in the Middle East have been, they weren’t without benefits. Those responsible for the 9/11 attacks are dead, Al-Qaeda and ISIS have been crippled, and our interests in the region are largely secure. There is much good that could be done by actively targeting terrorist groups in Africa (with special forces and precision airstrikes). Anti-terror efforts in Africa would lessen problems facing African nations and people regarding terrorism and in turn prevent African-based terrorists from acting against the U.S. or other nations outside Africa. The continent of Africa has long been a site of incredible human suffering, much of which resulted from and continued because of global apathy. If altruism is too much to ask for, then perhaps other nations will care about the state of Africa if the price of indifference is the supply of smartphones or the ability to operate motorized vehicles.
