"There is an opportunity to say, 'Look, we are back and we are prepared to engage at a different level, in different ways than we did in the past but in a much more positive way," said Cooke.
That means leading with the private sector.
"Those kinds of commercial investment relationships really are much more partnerships of equals, for the United States not to be looking at Africa as conflict, disease, and hunger, but also as a place where partnerships are possible," Cooke added.
On Mali, African leaders discussed a regional intervention force against al-Qaida affiliated terrorists in the north as French troops there withdraw. French President Francois Hollande.
"I consider that it is up to Africans themselves to ensure the security of Africa. But France is ready to work with Africans to give African armies the means to respond to all aggressions," Hollande said.
With West African ECOWAS troops arriving to support Malian forces, Cooke says international assistance is critical.
"As the ECOWAS forces deploy to those northern cities and try to hold the northern cities in Mali against Ansar Dine and AQIM, there is a need for more specialized training in counter-insurgency, in connecting with communities, intelligence gathering," Cooke said.
President Hollande says terrorism, trafficking and piracy in Africa are global issues that must be fought together.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25