Author: Eric Olander
Eric Olander is the co-founder of the China Global South Project, an independent, non-partisan media initiative dedicated to exploring every facet of China’s engagement in Africa. Eric is a fluent Mandarin-speaker and a longtime China-watcher with more than 25 years of journalism experience at many of the world’s leading media companies, including CNN, the BBC, and FRANCE24, among others. He received his undergraduate degree in East African History from the University of California at Berkeley and holds a master’s degree in Chinese Public Affairs from the University of Hong Kong.
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U.S.-led Coalition Rolls Out First Major Infrastructure Project Under the New Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment
The G7 group of wealthy countries unveiled the first major initiative as part of its Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII), which is ostensibly aimed at countering China's dominance in financing infrastructure in developing countries. The coalition announced a $20 ...
We Need to Acknowledge That Climate Justice Could Be Doomed
The historical enormity of the discussion at the COP27 climate summit around reparations to the Global South for the loss and damage caused by climate change provoked a conversation at the China Global South Project, and we wanted to share it with you. Here is Eric's take. ...
Biden in Asia Moves to Bolster the U.S. Against China
U.S. President Joe Biden landed on the Indonesian island of Bali late Sunday night ahead of the G20 leaders' summit, where he is also expected to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Monday's meeting between the two leaders will be the first time they have met in person since President ...
Biden Expressed Concern to Cambodia PM Hun Sen About What China’s Doing at the Ream Navy Base
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday raised concerns with the leader of Cambodia about Chinese activities at its Ream Naval Base, stressing the importance of full transparency, the White House said. But Chinese state media didn't take well to President Biden's apparent ...
Chinese PM Li Heads Home From Cambodia After Another Round of Diplomatic Speed Dating
Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang wrapped up a six-day visit to Cambodia on Sunday at the conclusion of a pair of regional summits where he also held a number of sideline bilaterals with both Asian and Pacific leaders: ...
Why Xi and Modi Should (and Shouldn’t) Meet on the Sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali
While much of the attention this week at the G20 summit in Bali will be on Monday's meeting between the U.S. and Chinese presidents, in South Asia, many observers will be keeping a close watch on what happens between Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Why This European Man Is so Happy to Be in Vietnam
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz seemed visibly happy to be back in Southeast Asia over the weekend and specifically to be out of China. Chancellor Scholz arrived in Hanoi on Sunday to kick off a four-day visit to Southeast Asia that will also include a stop in Singapore.
A Conversation with Molly Phee, the Top U.S. Diplomat for Africa
This Summer the United States updated its foreign policy for Africa when it shifted the focus from competing with China to improving governance and bolstering trade ties with the region. Now, three months later, the State Department's top diplomat for ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden to Attend Next Week’s G20 Summit in Bali
Indonesian President Joko Widodo confirmed that both Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden will attend next week's G20 summit in Bali but said it's still not certain if Russian leader Vladimir Putin will be there. President Xi will spend much of next week traveling in ...
More Evidence that the Africa-China Relationship is Increasingly Driven by Politics, Not Commodities
For centuries, many assumed that Africa's greatest contribution to the global economy was through selling stuff that comes out of the ground. That was certainly what drew the Chinese to Africa back in the early 2000s. Today that's no longer the case.
Chinese Oil Buying in Africa Plunges Amid Shift to Suppliers in Russia, Persian Gulf
Chinese oil imports from African countries dropped 22.6% year-on-year in the January-September period, highlighting a decade-long transition away from the continent to suppliers in Russia, the Persian Gulf and Brazil. The drop in 2022 further eroded Africa's total ...
Algeria is the Latest Developing Country to Get in Line to Join the BRICS Group
The Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs officially submitted its application this week to become a new member of the BRICS club. Algeria now joins a growing list of developing countries, including Argentina, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, that all want to join the Chinese-initiated group. ...