https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/biden-open-to-easing-sanctions-on-billionaire-gertler-in-return-for-congo-exit-1.2074102
My friend's partner was telling me the other day that something like 6-8 million people have been killed in the Congo over the last 10-15 years and nobody's talking about it
The Second Congo War, effectively a pan-African war involving a dozen states and dozens of non-state actors, is the 21st century's deadliest war with 5 million+ deaths and nobody (including myself) knows shit about it. The DRC effectively doesn't exist as a functioning state, it's half the size of the entire EU, and has like 70% of the world's cobalt, a critical component of smartphones. A nightmare.
The first and second Congo war were huge and no one in the west talked about it.
its just not a stable region. Outside of sheltered areas like UN camps, the country in general is essentially a territory war. I only learned about it because my French class as a way to practice French writing set up pen pals with various young peole in Congo who knew french via UN efforts.
All the failsons are running shit now and they just suck at their jobs
Not familiar with the current DRC administration, are they particularly hostile to US interests?
Also apparently on of the coup guys was a cannabis entrepreneur.
It looks like they started having ideas about having sovereignty over their resources, which US would definitely consider to be hostile towards its interests.
China build a copper refinery there, and zambia got a new pro-western leader shortly before, so yes in a way.
oh I CANT WAIT for all the details of this one to come out... If it's anything like the Operation Gideon hatchet job it'll be fucking hilarious.
Unfortunately we'll probably have to wait about 50 years for the details of MI6 and CIA involvement (with major official and unofficial redactions). If a U.S ambassador claims no involvement... they were involved as fuck.
I mean, look at this outright lie about Goulart's overthrow in Brazil - "The answer to that, senator, is very simple. The movement which overthrew President Goulart was a purely, 100 percent—not 99.44—but 100 percent purely Brazilian movement. Neither the American Embassy nor I personally played any part in the process whatsoever."
Meanwhile, "There was, moreover, the ongoing US Military Assistance Program, which Ambassador Gordon described as a "major vehicle for establishing close relationships with personnel of the armed forces" and "a highly important factor in influencing [the Brazilian] military to be pro-US."
As far as the US Ambassador to Brazil himself attempting a literal multimillion dollar bribe - "Ambassador Cabot remembers a "stormy conversation" in which Berle stated the United States had $300 million in reserve for Brazil and in effect "offered it as a bribe" for Brazilian cooperation ... Quadros became "visibly irritated" after Berle refused to heed his third "no".
Brazil is of course quite an old example now, but it's one that I had the quotes ready for where the U.S truly went mask off.
As time goes they're more careful, so you end up with admissions like this one from Kissinger, that they totally didn't have any involvement with the coup - 'Kissinger himself told Nixon five days after the coup: "We didn't do it. I mean we helped them. [Word missing] created the conditions as great as possible."
