The News
A US Air Force colonel with roots on the continent is expected to be appointed President Donald Trump’s senior Africa director, two people familiar with the matter told Semafor.
Col. Jean-Philippe Peltier, a career intelligence officer, was born in Chad and raised across Francophone Africa, wrote a PhD on sub-Saharan African politics, and served as director of the sub-Saharan African Orientation Course at the US Air Force Special Operations School. He would lead the White House’s Africa team at the White House’s National Security Council, which includes two Africa directors who have military experience, Brendan McNamara and Dan Dunham. It comes as reports suggest that Trump is considering folding US-Africa Command (Africom) into its European counterpart.
Some US-Africa policy watchers have said that Trump might have held off on its controversial offer of asylum to Afrikaners in South Africa and responded quicker to M23 rebel attacks in DR Congo if Africa experts had been in place sooner. The Africa Report first reported he was tipped for the job.