DM Monitoring
BEIJING: China hopes that the international community will address the real needs of African countries by taking concrete actions and deliver for the continent’s socioeconomic development and the welfare of its people, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday.
Spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the remarks at a daily news briefing when answering a question regarding a recent report on the bullying diplomacy of the United States in Africa.
The Institute for Global Dialogue of South Africa recently issued a report entitled “The Biden Administration and Africa in a Changing Global Order: Towards the 2nd US-Africa Summit”. According to the report, “The U.S. engagement largely seeks to counter China and Russia” in Africa and globally rather than take a tangible approach to addressing Africa’s development challenges.
The report also shows that, compared with the U.S. bullying diplomacy, China has been eagerly welcomed by African countries because of its stance on non-interference in internal affairs and win-win approach to its relations with Africa.
Wang said that this report, issued by a renowned academic institution of Africa, offers an African perspective on U.S.-Africa relations. “The report also points out that the U.S. policy towards Africa serves the United States’ own interests and aims to force African countries to choose sides on issues of global security, international landscape and great power competition.”
The U.S. strong-arm diplomacy will not succeed in Africa, said the spokesperson.
“Supporting Africa’s development is the common responsibility of the international community,” Wang said, adding that China has all along advanced its relations with Africa on the basis of the principles of sincerity, real results, affinity and good faith and with a commitment to the greater good and shared interests. Its partnership with African countries is always based on mutual respect, equality and sincere cooperation.
The spokesperson said that, with the U.S.-Africa Summit to be held soon, China welcomes a greater international focus on Africa, and firmly opposes turning Africa into a wrestling ground for major-country rivalry or using one’s Africa strategy as a tool to curb and attack other countries’ cooperation with Africa.
“African countries have the wisdom and capability to choose cooperation partners that help advance African interests,” Wang said.
