The research project I will be pursuing focuses on the role played by the Eastern Roman government in the conflicts that opposed Byzantium to the Islamic caliphate in North Africa from the clashes near Sufetula (647) to the eventual fall of Carthage in 698-699. The analysis of the available historical and archaeological documentation, greatly enriched by recent acquisitions, will be employed to underline the degree to which Africa was integrated into Byzantium's policies and military practices to counter the Muslim advance. Thanks to this work, it will be demonstrated that, despite final failure, far from wanting to renounce one of its Western possessions the Empire tried as far as it could to coordinate the defense of the North African provinces. The Imperial strategy was pivoted on the deployment of the provincial field army, active in North Africa until the last decade of the seventh century, on the alliance with the Moors and the exploitation of the provincial defense system, still in use, albeit with possible modifications, in much of North African territory as Arab sources indicate. On the other hand, it will be crucial to understand the reasons which ultimately led to the expansion of the Muslim armies west of Egypt, paying particular attention to the resources they used to succeed in the North African war theatre.