US POWER DYNAMICS IN AFRICA

The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 have had a profound effects on global perceptions of security and threats. The ensuing global War on Terror has increasingly been used by the US as a pretext to wage a ‘global war’, far outside the borders of the American homeland. As a result of this, Africa has grown in strategic value, with the US increasingly engaging with states like Kenya with the aim of disrupting and dismantling terrorist networks in the region. This new form of war has a distinct geopolitical nature that when examined could provide insights into the underlying aims and motives of US foreign policy. The aim of this study is therefore to gauge whether America’s increased interest and engagement with Kenya can be explained through a critical geopolitical perspective. In doing so this study analysed official US national security strategies, reports and policy documents and also utilized an analytical framework that centred on six key concepts of critical geopolitics; Geostrategic discourse, Geopolitical discourse and the discursive process, Geopolitical vision and subject, Geopolitical traditions, Geopolitical culture and Geographical imagi-nations. Furthermore the analysis was divided into three main sections; ideology & hegemony, identity & difference and space. The results of this study show that US engagement in Kenya can be understood through a critical geopolitical perspective. Not only has the US framed the nation as strategically important for safeguarding American interests, but by categorizing Kenya as a vital partner that shares the same values and goals the US has justified their increased engagement and interest in the country.