'We are interconnected' - Chatham House boss warns Ghana cannot ignore Middle East tensions - MyJoyOnline
As tensions between Israel and Iran escalate with deadly precision strikes, a top global affairs expert is warning that Ghana and the rest of Africa are not insulated from the fallout.
Dr. Alex Vines, Director of the Africa Programme at Chatham House, says Ghanaians must pay attention to the widening conflict.
Speaking Tuesday on Joy News’ PM Express, he delivered a stark message: “We are interconnected.”
“This impacts supply chains. It impacts the price of oil. It impacts the price of gold. It disrupts travel,” Dr. Vines told host Evans Mensah.
He spoke just days after Israel launched major airstrikes on Iran, killing senior Iranian military officials.
The strikes followed months of rising tensions and warnings. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed the attacks will continue “as long as necessary.”
But Dr. Vines insists the fallout won’t remain in the Middle East.
“If Ghanaians are going through the Middle East on travel, that will be disrupted,” he explained. “Flights that go near Iran at the moment, or near Israel, are being disrupted. So Ghana is struck.”
His warning comes as global markets respond nervously. Oil prices have spiked. Travel routes are being rerouted. Tensions have gripped the region, and the effects are rippling outward.
“The African continent is not immune by any means,” Dr. Vines said. “This plays—it overlaps—with all the conflicts we’ve also seen elsewhere.”
He compared the current crisis to the Russia-Ukraine war, which caused food and fuel prices in Africa to skyrocket.
“The Ukraine-Russia one has also inflated the price of commodities. It has impacted the price of fuel,” he added. “So we are interconnected. Ghana can’t ignore this. As I can’t in my own country, here in the UK.”
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