One thing I admire about Zik and Nkrumah era African nationalists - is that they understood that oftentimes, you HAD to CONFRONT the West.
Contemporary African "technocrats" on the other hand, tend to believe "the West is always right" & are seldom confrontational.

If you pay careful attention to India's excellent foreign minister (Dr. S. Jaishankar), you'll observe the benefits of "dishing it back" on the international stage.