China and Ghana marked the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations on Sunday and while these kinds of anniversaries typically aren’t very newsworthy, this year, well, things are different. Amid conflicts with India, the U.S., UK, Vietnam, Japan, Canada, Australia, and Sweden among a number of other countries, it’s safe to say that China is running a bit low these days when it comes to friendly diplomatic relations.

So, once again, Africa, Ghana in particular, provides an important counterweight to the challenges that China is facing in other parts of the world where ties with Beijing have become highly contentious.