Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been feuding bitterly with French President Emmanuel Macron on a number of geopolitical flashpoints. But underlying the simmering diplomatic tensions is an increasingly bitter rivalry for influence in Africa. But Turkey is now challenging France's powerful influence in many of the predominantly Muslim West African countries which were former French colonies." Caliskan believes Erdogan will likely exploit the latest row over the Mohamed cartoons in his challenge of France's' influence in Africa. "This will have a positive impact on Turkish presence in sub-Saharan Africa," argues Caliskan.

Source: The North Africa Journal November 16, 2020 12:33 UTC