A few clarifications regarding my last entry. With regards to Afghanistan, obviously the rhetoric that I employed was extreme. My reason for doing so was simple – to show that, despite what many Canadians believe, there is really no middle ground when it comes to our participation in direct combat operations. Peacekeeping is another matter altogether, as is aiding in reconstruction efforts, the first obviously being required to provide security for the second, but under a mandate that is not overtly aggressive. But that is not where we find ourselves at present, and Canadians should realize the difference between the two.

I find it interesting that the force employed during past conflicts seems to get overlooked when it comes to present conflicts, as if war has become something in which death and horror is not a reality any longer, or at least comes as a surprise when we find out that it is. During the Second World War, the bombing campaigns against both Germany and Japan were devastating, and did not go out of their way to minimize collateral damage. In fact, civilian demoralization was a goal, and one that produced significant results.

Now, I do not say this as an advocate for the use of such force, simply as a reminder that that is what war entails. There is no such thing as a clean war, though many have come to believe that such a thing can exist.

The second clarification that I would like to address is my reference to AFRICOM being headquartered in Ethiopia. If you research AFRICOM, which is the acronym for The United States Africa Command, you’ll discover that, according to the Department Of Defense, it is currently headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. AFRICOM was authorized in June of 2007 to the outrage of numerous African nations, among them Egypt, a long time US ally, who was ultimately excluded from its sphere of influence. The initial mandate of AFRICOM is similar to other US regional commands that were created after the Second World War. Though some of their names have been changed since, those initial commands are now represented by CENTCOM, EUCOM, PACOM, NORTHCOM, and SOUTHCOM. With the addition of AFRICOM, the United States now has joint military commands that encompass every region of the world. And while the Department of Defense lists the headquarters for all of them save EUCOM and AFRICOM as being on US soil, the reality is that adjunct regional command centers are, by no means, a thing of fantasy.

In the case of AFRICOM, there is widespread hostility towards it by many of the African nations that it covets. There are, of course, exceptions. Liberia, for example, has openly stated that it would host the command, though given the state of affairs in that nation it is entirely impractical (though that is not to say that some from of adjunct office might not ultimately be instituted there). Others that have been scouted include Gabon, Senegal, and Cameroon.

One nation, however, that has already stated that it will be working with AFRICOM is Ethiopia, a position that the country’s Prime Minister, Menes Zelawi, confirmed last fall. Ethiopia is also no stranger to US military training assistance. In 2004, a temporary base, Camp United, became home to training elements of the US 3rd Infantry, located near the Ethiopian Military Academy in Hurso, who were responsible for instruction in infantry fundamentals.

In December of 2006, Ethiopia, aided by the US Air Force and Special Forces teams, invaded Somalia to overthrow the ICU. In June of 2007, AFRICOM was authorized and then instituted in October of that year.

Added to this is the use of notorious Ethiopian prisons known for their use of torture to house detainees that have been used by the CIA and FBI for interrogation purposes.

Ultimately, AFRICOM’s ‘official’ residence might not ultimately be in Ethiopia, but there is no questioning the fact that, given US assistance to, and involvement with, Ethiopia, that its presence in that country is by no means slight. Of course, the United States has adamantly denied that AFRICOM’s purpose is geared towards the militarization of Africa. Unfortunately, given their complicity in the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia, that stance is highly dubious.

Therefore, for the sake of factual accuracy, I will retract my previous assertion (for the time being, at least).