ABSTRACT
This chapter explores a common intervention force and question the conceptions of security underpinning them. It demonstrates that, from a conceptual point of view, contemporary developments make a break from past initiatives, including Kwame N'Krumah's projects. The chapter argues that Africa is today going through a period of transition. It explores a description of the developments from independence to the end of the Cold War. The chapter assesses the breaks that occurred since the early 1990s through a confrontation of the 'liberal' discourse adopted by African organizations and their actual practice. The attitude of the AU towards the independence of South Sudan, which the organization made clear should not be considered as a precedent, illustrates the significance most African leaders give to the preservation of the state system. This is corroborated by the AU action in the Comoros.
