Chinese minister to visit six African countries
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing left today on an eight-day, six-nation tour of Africa (Cape Verde, Senegal, Mali, Liberia, Nigeria and Libya) to strengthen trade ties and find additional energy supplies to China's thirst for energy and raw materials. The second largest oil consumer, China already gets a third of its oil from Africa, and just a few days ago, its largest oil company, CNOOC, signed a deal to buy Nigerian oil and gas worth US$ 2.3 billion. Mr Li will also try to shore up ties with countries that have in past had relations with Taiwan.
Observers point out that China offers assistance, trade opportunities and investment without demanding any transparency or accountability. In the case of Nigeria, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan shrugged off concerns about the country's poor record on human rights and corruption saying that "China has always been opposed to some countries, people and organisations labelling certain other countries in this or that way."
The lack of Western investment in Africa has left the field open to China and India, countries which need energy to fuel their rapid economic development.
Politically, China has always had some influence in Africa. In the Sixties and Seventies, Mao's China threw its weight behind newly independent states. Ever since, China has been keen to be a leader among developing nations.
The mainland's Africa policy is also dictated by a desire to keep Taiwan isolated. Offers of loans and development aid to poor African countries have been used in the diplomatic tug-of-war with Taipei to get African countries to cut ties with Taiwan.
Most recently, Liberia switched from Taiwan to mainland China in 2003; Senegal did likewise in 2005. In the latter's case, trade between the two hit US$ 105 million in the first three quarters of last year.
Chinese scholars like He Wenping, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, have bristled at and rejected suggestions that China's policies towards Africa is neo-colonial in nature as some have suggested.
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27/05/2016 19:49
