The Security Culture of the African Union

Abstract

This chapter traces the origins of the cultural change, and identifies the major factors of continuity in the attitudes of African Union (AU) leaders. It investigates the ideas and norms that contributed to the shaping of the AU security culture and how they interacted with each other. The chapter reviews that both internal and external actors contributed to shape the security culture of the AU. It shows that the different perspectives of the governments of Nigeria, South Africa and Libya on regional integration and African security affected the origins of the AU security architecture and contributed to the ambiguities of its constitutive norms. The chapter analyses the role of external actors in the development of the AU security culture by taking into account their intervention in failed and war-torn states. It demonstrates how the contrasts between the European and Chinese models of security-building increased the agency of AU leaders in the shaping of regional security norms.