IN TRUMP'S WORLD, EVERYONE BUYS GUNS - Filenews 18/4
The African Army Forces 2026 summit, recently held in Rome, looked in many ways like any other US-led military summit. The hotel halls were filled with military personnel from all over the world, who wore uniforms filled with medals and insignia, while their shoulders were loaded with gold epaulettes.
At the luxury resort, which was located on a hilltop above the Vatican, African representatives met with their American and NATO counterparts for sessions on counterterrorism, education and coordination. At the same time, many informal discussions took place in the corridors of the building.
Just outside the conference room, however, the atmosphere of the conference, which took place from March 22 to 24, had a different tone, reflecting changes in the White House's priorities. Although there were traditional defense contractors who sold drones, assault rifles, missile systems, and other military hardware, there were fewer traditional suppliers than those from Trump's world, such as cryptocurrency firms, artificial intelligence, consulting firms, and finance corporations. "It's very useful for us to have all these companies here," said Esono Dhama, Inspector General of the Armed Forces of Equatorial Guinea, while observing the crowd.
The summit was packed with U.S. private equity firms, data startups, and AI software vendors, all promising to catapult military capabilities into the 21st century. At dozens of booths, sales teams stood with icy smiles, trying to attract customers while sipping endless cups of coffee. An American colonel offered a glimpse into new explosive technologies through virtual reality glasses. Men from the companies "Operation Bitcoin" and "Bitcoin Beach" walked the aisles, handing out business cards, while avoiding conversations with people without high-grade insignia on their shoulders. Ian Newell, vice president of Austin-based AI startup OpenTeams, which has been a Pentagon contractor for the past three years, said that while he didn't expect immediate sales, the trip to Rome would result in stronger relationships with a rapidly growing region of the planet. "I'm excited to build relationships on a broad scale with Africa, rather than just giving advice," Newell said.
Blurred lines
This scene highlighted US President Donald Trump's efforts to turn arms sales and trade relations into a central foreign policy tool. Since effectively dissolving the U.S. Organization for International Development (USAID) in 2025, Trump has reshaped interaction with U.S. partners on the basis of more purely transactional terms. In February, the U.S. government asked its agencies to identify export opportunities and develop a "sales catalogue" of weapons systems to be promoted abroad.
Although the concept is still being formed, the transition to this very transactional approach has been one of the main topics of discussion in Rome as private contractors try to fill the void left by USAID. Lt. Gen. John Brennan, deputy commander of U.S. Africa Headquarters, told reporters that the summit reflected "trade, not assistance, a direction that has been explicitly given to us," and that the Pentagon is now working with private U.S. companies to broker deals across Africa.
Cotter Fryes, founder of Triumvirate Industries, a Wyoming company, was looking for mining opportunities in war-torn regions of sub-Saharan Africa. He wore a brown striped suit, a hat and boots made of serpentine leather — "I'm a real cowboy," he said — and cited his company's experience in South Sudan, where it has won concessions from the government but has not yet begun mining. "Mining is a fundamental activity for human civilization, yet we have abandoned it because it is considered dirty," he said. "We have handed it over to the Chinese."
However, several participants expressed confusion about the ongoing transition that is taking place under the auspices of the US administration. Alex Merchle of Abdel Hadi Abdullah Al Qahtani & Sons, a Saudi consortium with interests in areas such as minerals and defense technology, said he would like more clarity on how businesses could take on the role the U.S. government once played through USAID. "The dividing line between politics and business activity has certainly blurred a lot," Merchle said.
Consistency
Some African participants, however, question whether the new American approach can work. In Benin, where al-Qaeda-linked terrorists are increasingly active, the military is grappling with U.S. cuts to training programs and supplies — areas in which private companies are less likely to get involved.
"They say, 'We are withdrawing aid to your country, but here is the technology you need to use,'" said Lieutenant General Abu Issa, head of Benin's ground forces. Our main concern, he continued, is that cooperation with the US is no longer assured, as there is no confidence in Washington's consistency. "How can we count on a partner who can change his mind overnight?"
Adaptation – Editing: George D. Pavlopoulos
