Author: Cobus van Staden
Dr. Cobus van Staden is an accomplished scholar, journalist, and think tank analyst with more than 20 years of experience in Africa and Asia. Previously, he was the senior China-Africa researcher at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) in Johannesburg. Cobus completed his Ph.D. in Japanese studies and media studies at the University of Nagoya in Japan in 2008. He focused on comparisons of Chinese and Japanese public diplomacy in Africa during postdoctoral positions at the University of Stellenbosch and the SARCHI Chair on African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy at the University of Johannesburg before joining the Department of Media Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2013. His academic research focused on media coverage of the China-Africa and Japan-Africa relationships, as well as the use of media in public diplomacy in the Global South.
Related Posts
Chinese Scholars Map the Future of Africa-China Relations
How are Africa-China relations changing in response to crises like Ukraine? Few are more preoccupied with this issue than China’s Africa scholars. The Africa Research Group of the Eurasia Systems Science Society, which includes some of the most prominent Africa scholars in China, recently hosted a conference ...
China Kicks Off HoA Conference With Offer to Mediate Regional Conflicts
China's Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa (HoA), Xue Bing, opened a two-day peace conference in Addis Ababa on Monday with an unexpected offer that he would personally make himself available to mediate some of the conflicts currently roiling the region. “I ...
“New” Poll Reaffirms China Far Less Popular Than the U.S. as World Leader
The same week that a pan-African survey revealed that China, for the first time, outperformed the United States in overall favorability, another poll comparing the two major powers, this time by the geopolitical risk consultancy Eurasia Group Foundation, came out with very different results in many of the world's largest ...
Solomon Islands Assure Australia on Chinese Base, Leaves Some Wiggle Room
Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare of the Solomon Islands assured Australia’s visiting Foreign Minister Penny Wong that China won’t be allowed to build a permanent military base there. Wong told journalists: “I welcomed Prime Minister Sogavare’s reassurances that there will not be a military ...
The New U.S. Ambassador to Ghana Speaks Chinese
Washington's new envoy to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, comes to the job with an unusual background for a U.S. diplomat in Africa -- she speaks Chinese! Palmer, according to the U.S. embassy in Accra's official bio, was previously posted to both China and ...
New Law Governing Chinese “Non-War” Military Operations Implemented
A draft law regulating the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s “Military Operations Other than War” (MOOTW) took effect on Wednesday. The regulation covers activities like disaster relief, humanitarian aid, escort operations, and peacekeeping. Signed by President Xi Jinping in his capacity as head of ...
Debt Warnings Are Flashing in Laos
How China acts in the Zambian debt restructuring process will no doubt be closely watched in Laos. This is because of rising fears that the Southeast Asian country could be the next to fall into debt distress. Laotian public debt now stands at $14.5 ...
U.S. Special Envoy Visits Marshall Islands Amid Concern About China
Joseph Yun, the Biden administration’s special envoy to the Pacific Island States, is in the region for a visit to the Marshall Islands. The visit, from 14 to 16 June, will focus on renewing the U.S.’s Compact of Free Association (COFA) economic agreements with the Marshall Islands, ...
What is China’s Real Role in Sri Lanka’s Debt Crisis?
Few debt crises have triggered as much disinformation as Sri Lanka’s. The country is currently grappling with a complex debt restructuring process amid its worst economic crisis since independence. The role of Chinese debt has drawn much attention and many false narratives - not least the allegation that Hambantota Port was ...
Possible U.S.-China Cooperation in Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka is currently scrambling for support amid its worst economic crisis since independence. But the crisis could provide a rare opportunity for cooperation between China and the United States. Qi Zhenhong, China’s ambassador to the South Asian island state, met with his U.S counterpart Julie Chung this week.
China Rates More Positively Among Young Africans than U.S.: Survey
A new survey shows that more young Africans see China as a positive influence in their lives than the United States. 76% of respondents rated China as a foreign power with a beneficial impact on their lives, while 72% said the same for the United States.
BBC Doc Tracks Origin of Racist “Shout-Out” Videos Featuring African Children
The BBC debuted a documentary investigating the origin of commissioned videos of African children being coached to recite messages in Chinese that have gone viral in China. These are frequently starkly racist and reveal the prevalence of anti-Black attitudes in China. The documentary was ...