China-Africa Ties

  • Badung Conference

    Premier Zhou Enlai met with African leaders in Indonesia, establishing diplomatic ties and support for anti-colonial movements.
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    Kwame Nkrumah initing Chinese military advisors to train freedom fighters

  • African Independence and Diplomatic Recognition

    As African nations gained independence in the late 1950s and 1960s, China formed ties with countries like Egypt, Ghana, and Guinea, and promoted support for African liberation movements.
  • Formation of the Non-Aligned movement

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    Congo Crisis

    TheCongo Crises set the stage for Cold War politics in Africa and provide some clue to China’s interest in Africa during the first decade of independence. Seeking for ways to compete with the superpowers for control over Congo’s copper resources crucial for military and civilian hardware, Mao Tse Tung remarked in 1964, “If we obtain Congo, we have obtained Africa. Congo is our passageway into Africa.”
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    Zhou Enlai’s African Tour

    Zhou visited ten African nations, strengthening ties and establishing China's "Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence."
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    Cultural Revolution Impact

    During the Cultural Revolution, China’s aggressive revolutionary stance affected relations: China openly supported radical movements in Africa, alarming conservative governments.
    Several African countries expelled Chinese personnel, including Ghana and the Central African Republic, where local governments grew wary of perceived Chinese interference.
  • UN Admission

    African support helped secure China’s UN seat, replacing Taiwan.
  • Tanzania-Zambia Railway Project

    China funded and built a significant infrastructure project in Africa, symbolizing Sino-African cooperation.
  • Domestic Modernization Priority

    China redirected focus to internal economic modernisation. This reduced China’s foreign aid and Africa’s centrality in Chinese foreign policy, as economic cooperation took precedence over ideological support.
  • Limited Economic and Diplomatic Expansion

    Despite prioritizing China’s internal development, diplomatic recognition grew, with 48 African nations supporting China’s "One China" policy by the 1980s. High-level exchanges were limited, but China maintained goodwill by favoring economic over ideological engagement.
  • Zhao Ziyang’s African Tour

    to signal China’s continued interest, Premier Zhao visited 11 African nations, discussing ways to adapt aid policies. He introduced the "Four Principles" of foreign aid, emphasising economic effectiveness, shorter project timelines, and local development tailored to African conditions.
  • Military and Peacekeeping Support

    In a major shift, China deployed its first peacekeepers to Namibia in 1989, marking its entry into UN peacekeeping in Africa. Arms exports, though limited, went primarily to countries like Egypt and Sudan, representing China’s early efforts to position itself as a reliable security partner