Category: Diplomacy
First Zambia, Now Ethiopia: African Debt Restructuring Gains Momentum
The Franco-Chinese-led Creditors Committee overseeing debt restructuring for three African countries under the auspices of the G20's Common Framework will meet on Monday for the first time to discuss the situation in Ethiopia. The same committee has been meeting in Paris for ...
Iran to Become Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member by 2023
Iran will become a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in April 2023, according to the Chinese state newspaper Global Times. Iran has lobbied to join the Eurasia-spanning group for more than a decade, and its acceptance is sure to further boost ...
Chinese Weapons and Military Equipment Are Showing Up on the Battlefields of the Eastern DR Congo
Chinese-made weapons and military equipment are in wide use by the Congolese rebel group M23 and other factions battling in the eastern DRC, according to an investigation by the DRC news publication Politico.cd. "M23 weapons seized by the FARDC (the Congolese military) ...
A Glimpse into China’s Senior Diplomat’s Visit to Africa and Asia
Yang Jiechi, one of China's most senior foreign policy officials and a politburo member, visited Pakistan, The UAE, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe earlier this month and gave a rare interview to Xinhua about his trip. While he mostly stuck to official talking ...
Chinese Lithium Giant Expands into Argentina
The Chinese battery metals company Ganfeng Lithium Co. will spend $962 million to buy 100% of the Argentinian lithium compounds producer Lithea. The company owns lithium salt lakes with a capacity of 30,000 tons of lithium carbonate per year. Ganfeng Lithium ...
China’s Frenetic Diplomatic Push at the G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting in Bali
Coverage of the G20 Foreign Ministers' meeting in Bali was dominated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's high-profile exit from the meeting and the first encounter since October between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. But the event also saw a flurry of Chinese diplomatic ...
Blinken Calls on China, ASEAN to Put Pressure on Mynamar Junta
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged China and members of the ten-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to collectively pressure the military government in Myanmar to return to democracy. "It is incumbent on China and in China's interest to see ...
Zambia Expected to Finalize Debt Restructuring Deal By the End of the Month
Zambia appears to be edging closer to a debt restructuring deal with its official creditors. Insiders tell Reuters it could happen sometime in July. Some sort of arrangement between the Zambian government and the Franco-Chinese-led Creditor Committee would be a major breakthrough. ...
Maritime Issues Could Headline the Next High-Level Chinese Tour of Africa
China's most senior diplomat for Sub-Saharan Africa announced that Special Representative on African Affairs, Xu Jinghu, has kicked off an 8-nation African tour. The Foreign Ministry hasn't provided any information about her visit besides the itinerary (thanks to this map). Prominent Africa-China ...
Reports: Saudi Arabia Eyeing Chinese Stealth Fighter Jets
It appears that sources within the Saudi Arabian Royal Air Force are leaking information about their apparent interest in acquiring and possibly even manufacturing FC-31s, China's most advanced stealth fighter jet. Saudi news reports also indicate that the Chinese are also ...
Q&A: China’s DRC Envoy Says Beijing Open to Cooperate With U.S. in Congo
In 2021, Sino-Congolese relations were somewhat shaken when two major Chinese investments in the mining sector in D.R. Congo were questioned and investigated by NGOs and Congolese authorities. The Sicomines project was the target for some of this criticism. The ...
U.S. Tries to Stem the Flow of Iranian Oil to China
The United States government on Wednesday imposed new sanctions against Iranian oil companies and the network of firms that help facilitate the flow of Iranian crude to markets in East Asia, specifically China. Every year, millions of barrels of oil are effectively ...