The United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, will today meet President Bola Tinubu and Ivory Coast President, Alassane Ouattara, in a bid to forge a united front with key African democracies. In Abidjan, Blinken will meet Ouattara, a veteran leader who has won US praise for strengthening democracy, before heading to Abuja to see Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, elected last year on a platform of economic reforms. The two West African powers, one English-speaking and one French-speaking, have largely stood by the United States regardless of unease in much of the continent over the Weste…