O. S. KULKOVA Post-graduate student of the Institute of Africa of the Russian Academy of Sciences The history of relations between Great Britain and the countries of Africa goes back more than one century. After a relative decline in interest in Africa during the Cold War era, by the mid-1990s, the United Kingdom was once again turning to the continent, which was associated with the accession of Tony Blair to the post of Prime Minister in 1997, who brought new Labour to power. The focus on Africa continued under Gordon Brown, who succeeded Blair. Even in the midst of an acute financial crisis, the UK is committed to doing its part to solve Africa's problems. The end of the XX - beginning of the XXI centuries was a time of intensifying the struggle for access to African mineral resources. Tony Blair was able to draw the attention of the world community to the problems and prospects of this continent. He believed that the UK should actively shape the international agenda. The ideas of social justice and responsibility were brought to the world stage by New Labour 1. Labour politicians and ideologues (T. Blair himself, his first Foreign Secretary R. Cook, diplomat R. Cooper, etc.) proclaimed a "new internationalism", according to which the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of States cannot and should not even be observed in cases of "threats to international peace and security" (such as genocide,genocide, genocide). R. Cook declared his commitment to an "ethical approach" in the implementation of foreign policy, which, however, for a number of reasons began to be perceived as political hypocrisy. So, he came into conflict with the UK's interest in arms sales to Africa. In violation of the UN embargo, the British company Sandline supplied weapons to Sierra Leone during the conflict in the country, and the company B. A. I., through a subsidiary in South Africa, supplied weapons to the Museveni regime in Uganda, where they were used to suppress opposit ... Read more