China-Africa 101: Sino-Indian Competition for Influence in African Indian Ocean Islands

MONEY SHARMA / AFP

In August 2017, China constructed its first overseas base in Djibouti. This gives considerable advantage to China’s ambitions in the Indian Ocean. As CNN reports, the base is near the Bab el Mandeb Strait which is one of the planet’s busiest shipping lanes and one of the three crucial Indian Ocean arteries.

India, trying to balance the scale in the Indian Ocean, made an agreement with the government of Seychelles in January 2018 to build military facilities. The plans included the construction of an airstrip as well as a jetty (for docking vessels). The site of this facility is Assumption Island, one of the 115 islands that make up Seychelles.

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by Lina Getachew Ayenew

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