20101210
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The United States government is very much focused and engaged on a wide array of issues across the African continent, and WikiLeaks has not distracted U.S. officials in any way from their overall goal of building a strong U.S.-Africa partnership, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson told reporters December 9.

First on the list of U.S.-Africa priorities, Carson told reporters who had called in to Washington from across sub-Saharan Africa, is Côte d'Ivoire, where "it is the determination of the U.S. government to do everything that we possibly can to ensure that the votes of all Ivorians are counted and respected and that the legitimately elected president ... Alassane Ouattara is allowed to take office ... as reflected by the votes" cast in the country's November 28 election.

Additionally, he said, the U.S. government is very much focused on Sudan. "All of you know that today is December 9. Exactly one month from today ... the people of South Sudan will have an opportunity to participate in a referendum to determine whether they will remain a part of a united Sudan or whether they will vote for independence. The registration of voters," he said, "has just been completed and we are extremely optimistic that things are moving in the right direction in the South." Carson cautioned, however, that there are still "many hurdles and obstacles to be overcome before January 9."

Another area of focus, he said, is the Lord's Resistance Army and its continued activities in Africa from the eastern Congo to the Sudanese border. Carson called the group "one of the most pernicious rebel groups on the continent."

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with Nigerian Foreign Minister Odein Ajumogobia on December 10 and next week will meet with South African Foreign Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane. Those meetings, Carson said, are "part of our strategic dialogues, which we established a year ago" with Nigeria, South Africa and Angola.

Carson said top priorities in Africa remain the same: strengthening democracy, good governance and adherence to the rule of law. "This is why we have focused a lot on developments in Côte d'Ivoire and why we applaud the successful end to the electoral contest in Guinea-Conakry, where this past week we saw for the first time in 50 years a democratically elected president installed in that country. We wish President Alpha Condé well as he leads his country forward. We also applaud his opposition candidate, Cellou Dalein Diallo, for accepting the will of the people, accepting the outcome of the vote and stepping aside without contestation and saying that he will focus on the new government and focus his new electoral efforts on upcoming parliamentary elections."

Another priority for the United States, Carson said, is to "do everything we can to continue to help African countries grow their economies, strengthen economic reform and provide job opportunities and economic prosperity to all of their people. It is important that Africa continue to make the strong economic strides that are essential to providing a better life for the people of the continent."

Thirdly, Carson said, the United States seeks to help prevent and stop conflicts. "While the number of conflicts in Africa has sharply decreased over the last decade and a half, there remain serious conflicts in conflict zones in Somalia, Sudan and in the eastern Congo. We want to work as we have been doing in Sudan, to ensure that there is a full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and to bring an end to the humanitarian and political crisis that has made life so difficult and hard for hundreds of thousands of people who reside in Darfur."

Fourthly, the United States seeks to work with Africa to help it address its public health problems, from HIV/AIDS to other maladies such as malaria, cholera and tuberculosis. "President Obama is committed to doing everything he can through his Global Health Initiative to help Africa address its medical problems," Carson said.

Fifthly, Carson said, the United States is focused on transnational issues that affect Africa, America and all regions of the world equally. "These are issues that we have to confront as an international community, or these things will slowly erode our global fabric," he said. They include drug trafficking, human trafficking, climate change, piracy, terrorism and violent extremism. To address these issues effectively, he said, "we need partnerships and collaboration."

Carson told reporters WikiLeaks has not distracted U.S. officials in their effort to advance a strong U.S.-Africa partnership.

While refusing to comment on any specific diplomatic cables, Carson said: "Embassies carry on candid, sensitive discussions with Washington and Washington officials, but no one cable, no group of cables, reflect the policy of the United States. They are a snapshot in time, perhaps about one small issue or concern, but they do not represent the totality of all of the interests that we have."

The cables that have come to light as a result of WikiLeaks are the "equivalent of reading private correspondence between you and your wife," Carson said, "in which you in fact may be talking about your mother-in-law or father-in-law, both of whom you love dearly, but you may in fact have some disagreements about the suits that they wear or the shoes that they put on in the morning. This is stolen information" and he asked that people not trade in "stolen mail."