[ROAPE] Charting the evolution of US-led imperialism, 1974-2026
제국주의 구조와 신국제질서, 외채와 구조조정, 군사 개입, 자원 통제의 관점에서 1974년 이후 미국 주도 제국주의의 변화와 지속성을 분석한다.
Source: Review of African Political Economy (ROAPE) | Published: 2026-09-16
Category: 아프리카 정치경제 | Keywords: imperialism, debt, policy, state
In 1990, Indian Marxist economist and political commentator Prabhat Patnaik asked ‘ Whatever has happened to imperialism? ’. His point was not that it had disappeared. To the contrary, he argued, “the deafening silence about imperialism is a reflection of the extraordinary strength and vigour it is displaying at present”. The silence is no more. The mask of US-led imperialism is now off. The long, drawn-out process of seeking to justify and manufacture consent for the illegal invasions of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003 abandoned.
In its place, bald assertions and celebrations of US imperialist intent from President Trump and his White House coterie of acolytes. The deafening explosion of US-Israeli bombs, missiles, mortars, and munitions falling from the skies over Gaza and Iran. Over 100,000 tonnes of explosives dropped on Gaza alone since October 2023.
Following Patnaik’s logic, this new phase of flagrant ‘might is right’ imperialism might be interpreted as a weakening of the US’ position as global imperialist hegemon. Perhaps so – yet it will not feel this way to those who suffer under its unrelenting assault.
Gaza, Iran, Venezuela and the much-less covered intensification of the Cuban blockade are the most glaring examples of US-led imperialism in 2026. Who will fall next, under the pounding of US bombs, the chokehold of US sanctions or blockade, the deposing or killing of sovereign leaders?
In such a moment, developing and deepening our understanding of US-led imperialism has become an urgent task for radical and progressive forces everywhere. In this spirit, Review of African Political Economy offers a curated selection of ten open-access publications on the topic of US-led imperialism from our archives.
For the inspired reader, our more than 50 years of easily searchable archives are filled with further analysis on imperialism and Africa including engagement with the broader debates concerning class, accumulation and state capture. The simple use of the keyword ‘imperialism’ alone, for instance, returns 85 articles that focus in one way or another on this topic.
Collectively, the ten contributions listed below theorise the evolving drivers, manifestations and contradictions of US-led imperialism over time (for, to harness Cabral, “ nobody has yet made a successful revolution without a revolutionary theory ”) while laying bare its devastating consequences for those against whom it is directed.
US-led imperialism and Africa
1. US imperialism and Southern Africa , Barry Cohen (1977)
Contends Carter-era US policy toward Southern Africa sought not to end imperial domination but to manage decolonisation and racial conflict in ways that preserved capitalist and strategic interests while containing revolutionary movements.
2. Imperialism and the national bourgeoisie , Bjorn Beckman (1981)
Argues local capitalist classes in postcolonial Africa are not anti-imperialist national liberators but partners of global capital, helping reproduce underdevelopment by using state power to shield both domestic and foreign elites from popular demands.
3. Imperialism in the post-cold war era , Giles Mohan and Alfred Zack-Williams (1995)
Demonstrates how in the post-Cold War era, imperialism has not disappeared but has been reconfigured through debt, structural adjustment, financial globalisation, and selective intervention, continuing to subordinate African development to the interests of advanced capitalist powers.
4. Bringing imperialism back in , Ray Bush and Morris Svfetel (1999)
Contends the dominant discourse of globalisation obscures the enduring realities of imperialism, showing how international financial institutions, debt regimes, and neoliberal restructuring deepen African dependency while presenting market rule as the only possible path to development.
5. Africa, imperialism and new forms of accumulation , Sarah Bracking and Graham Harrison (2003)
Argues contemporary African capitalism remains structured by imperialist relations in which global and local elites use states, markets, debt, and new forms of accumulation to reproduce inequality, exploitation, and external domination under the banner of globalisation and development.
6. Imperialism and international governance: the case of US policy towards Africa , Robert Biel (2003)
Shows how US policy toward Africa seeks to manage the contradictions of global capitalism through a mix of neoliberal governance, selective partnerships and military power, while preserving an unequal international order that secures Northern dominance over the Global South.
7. Terror in the Sahara: the implications of US imperialism for North and West Africa , Jeremy Keenan (2004)
Outlines how the post-9/11 construction of a terrorist threat across the Sahara served as an ideological cover for expanding US military influence in Africa and securing strategic access to energy resources, particularly oil, under the banner of the ‘War on Terror’.
8. Neo-imperialism and African development , Alfred Zack-Williams (2013)
Contends contemporary neo-imperialism in Africa operates through both military intervention and economic mechanisms such as debt, trade agreements, and resource extraction, reproducing external domination while constraining autonomous development and popular sovereignty.
9. Interpreting contemporary imperialism: lessons from Samir Amin , Jayati Gosh (2021)
Drawing on Samir Amin, argues that contemporary imperialism persists through the monopolistic control of technology, finance, resources, knowledge and global value chains, reproducing unequal exchange and transferring wealth from the Global South to global capital even in an increasingly multipolar world.
10. Imperialism and Africa , Ray Bush (2024)
Argues that imperialism remains the defining structure of global capitalism, operating through debt, unequal exchange, militarism, war, resource extraction and knowledge control to sustain the dominance of the imperial core while obstructing sovereign and emancipatory development in Africa.