- China’s new foreign minister is on a five-country tour of Africa.
- He had previously been stationed as a Chinese envoy in Washington.
- China signed a memorandum of understanding on “political consultations” with Ethiopia.
The new foreign minister of the People’s Republic of China is on a tour of five African countries, a week after bidding farewell to the United States, where he was stationed as the Chinese envoy in Washington.
Qin Gang, who had been ambassador to the US since July 2021, spoke with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, calling for a “better relationship between China and the US”.
But with the two nations vying for dominance in Africa, the Qing’s first port of call as foreign minister is to interact with the leaders of Ethiopia, Gabon, Angola, Benin and Egypt, all of whom attended the Leaders’ Summit of United States and Africa in Washington in December of last year.
It has become something of a tradition that every foreign minister’s first visit outside of China is to Africa.
Ethiopia
During his stopover in Ethiopia on Tuesday, he met with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
According to the Chinese state-controlled Xinhua news agency, Qin also met with Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen.
One of the main diplomatic points noted was the signing of a memorandum of understanding on political consultation between the two countries.
Qin arrived in Ethiopia just two months after the cessation of hostilities in the Tigray region.
The two-year civil war was finally ended through negotiations in which the US played an observer role, while China dealt with Abiy particularly through the Belt and Road Initiative, moving away from domestic politics.
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Addressing reporters in Addis Ababa, Qin said China’s views on cessation of hostilities in Tigray are incorporated into the “Perspective on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa.”
The perspective seeks to unite the countries of the Horn of Africa, through the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, which is an eight-member East African bloc, bringing together Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, South and Uganda.
Qin added that China will take an active part in rebuilding war-torn Tigray.
Egypt
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Qin will also meet Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit.
The Arab League brings together 22 nations from North, West and East Africa, as well as West Asia.
In December, Egypt attended the China-Arab Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, along with Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Tunisia, Comoros, Libya, Somalia and Sudan.
At the summit, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi told his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that the meeting was important for a “solid understanding with China” at a time when the world was divided.
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Therefore, Qin’s visit will seek to follow up on the mutual commitments between China and Egypt.
According to Marwa Al-Shinawy, an associate professor at the American International University for Specialized Studies, “Egypt-China relations are the cornerstone of any conversation on Africa-China cooperation.”
Al-Shinawy added:
This is because Egypt is the first African country, other than Arab, to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China.
Egypt was the first Arab and African nation to recognize the People’s Republic of China in 1956.
angola
China and Angola have ties dating back to before the latter’s independence. At present, they are based on a developing business relationship.
China’s third largest trading partner in Africa as of 2021 was Angola. But that relationship benefits China more, with Angola owing R315 billion, around 40% of its total foreign debt.
Data from Boston University’s Center for Global Development Policy lists Angola as the largest recipient of Chinese loans, but China’s tightening of lending facilities last year will have negative impacts.
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In December, President João Lourenço, after attending the US Africa Leaders Summit, announced that he wanted closer ties with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and preferred US military technology to Russian and Chinese military hardware. .
One of the most notable open confrontations between China and the US in Angola is the imprint of Huawei.
The US-owned Africell Mobile Company launched operations in Angola last year in what US Assistant Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said was a direct challenge to Huawei’s dominance.
Benin
At the end of December last year, Xi Jinping exchanged congratulatory messages with Benin’s President Patrice Talon on the 50th anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
“At present, bilateral relations enjoy a solid growth momentum with fruitful cooperation in various fields, bringing real benefits to the people of both countries.
“Xi said he attaches great importance to the development of China-Benin relations and is willing to work with President Talon to deepen cooperation in various fields within the frameworks of the Belt and Road cooperation and the Forum for Cooperation. China-Africa, so that to bring China-Benin relations to a new level,” read a notice from the Chinese Foreign Ministry about the December 29, 2022 conversation between Xi and Talon.
In the same statement, Talon “expressed his firm belief that the unwavering cooperation between Benin and China will yield even greater results.”
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With less than a month since the talk, Xi sent Qin to hold meetings with Benin’s leaders.
The Center for Chinese Studies in Africa at the University of Johannesburg said the main trade between Benin and China was in infrastructure and energy since the China National Petroleum Corp signed a contract with Benin to build and operate crude oil facilities.
Gabon
Qing’s predecessor Wang Yi met with his Gabonese counterpart Michael Moussa-Adamo and assured him of China’s commitment to Belt and Road cooperation on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York in September of last year.
With a new foreign minister, China will seek to continue as Gabon’s largest economic and trading partner.
China has been instrumental in developing Gabon’s infrastructure and took the lead in supporting the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Qin’s African tour started on January 9 and will end on January 16.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect the correct spelling of the new foreign minister.
News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained in this document do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
