China, Russia, and Europe’s Southern Flank (OUTR21014)

On 9 December 2020, the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies conducted a virtual Outreach seminar that examined the growing role of Russia and China in the defense and security sectors of Africa and the Arab world, and the implications for those regions and their longstanding relationships with Europe. The seminar addressed issues like great power competition, irregular warfare, religious extremism, terrorism, and instability in the Middle East and Africa. More than 50 participants registered from 27 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and North America to exchange with one another and with 11 speakers and moderators from all regions during the six-hour event. Key takeaways included that China and Russia desire the status and prestige of a great power in these regions without assuming the responsibilities of a security guarantor; and that Europe must do more to promote its own defense and security contributions in Africa and the Middle East, to combat Chinese and Russian messages that oversell their own successes and undermine shared values, like civilian control of the military.