A recent visit to Africa by China’s newly-appointed foreign minister, Qin Gang, has restoked fears of the Chinese Communist Party moving to supplant the United States as a principal foreign partner on the continent.
Qin’s five-nation Africa tour (Ethiopia, Angola, Benin, Gabon, and Egypt) from Jan. 9–16 came less than two weeks after his appointment.
Known for his “tough talk” against the West, President Xi Jinping’s trusted aide insisted Africa must have a greater voice in the United Nations Security Council and other international bodies.
“Africa should be a platform for international cooperation, not an arena for competition between major countries,” Qin said at the inauguration of the Chinese-funded headquarters for the African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa….