8.11C - Aid as Foreign Policy
The extent to which superpowers use development aid as an extension of their foreign policies and judge success in terms of access to resources, political support in IGOs and military alliances, and formation of military alliances.
A major issue with development aid is the suspicion that it often has as much to do with geopolitics as it does with improving socio-economic conditions in developing countries. This is especially true of bilateral aid given from one country to another.
Aid can be used by superpowers to assist geostrategic interests:
- Chinese aid to Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Russia and Turkmenistan is linked to the Chinese Belt and Road economic plan, sometimes called the 'New Silk Road'. This is a massive plan to develop new sea and land trade routes between China, South Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
- French and UK aid is funnelled towards former colonies: English-speaking East Africa (Commonwealth countries) and Francophone West Africa which helps maintain old alliances.
- French aid is perhaps the most global, as France seeks strategic partners worldwide (e.g. Indonesia, China, Brazil, Colombia)
- UK and US aid often overlap, especially in the Middle East and East (North?) Africa, where is Islamic terrorism is seen as a threat that must be countered.
Aid can lubricate a number of wider interests, including:
- Opening up access to natural resources such as oil, metal ores and minerals: often cited as a key reason behind Chinese aid to African nations (Angola, Mali)
- Strengthening military alliances: this is one reason why France gives aid to Turkey as both are members of NATO, and why US and UK aid often goes to the same countries, because they are military allies
- USA aid to Ukraine strengthens the alliance between these countries against Russia (which invaded and annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014)
Although this is very hard to prove, aid recipients might be expected to support their donor countries within IGOs such as the UN or WTO -> aid can help win political support.