What to make of China’s non-interference policy in Africa

Chinese President Xi Jinping inspect the millitary gaurd of honour during his state visit to South Africa at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. 02/12/2015. Kopano Tlape GCIS

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Par Mamoudou Gazibo et Abdou Rahim Lema / 11 mai 2023 / Africa at LSE blog

“The “security turn” in China-Africa relations is not a return of the brutal colonial history with a dragon face. Rather, non-interference still is, and will likely remain, the guiding principle of China’s security engagement with Africa, writes Mamoudou Gazibo and Abdou Rahim Lema.

China’s efforts to deepen its relations with African countries have raised uncomfortable questions regarding its long-held foreign policy doctrine of non-interference. The debate is becoming even more intense because of Beijing’s expanding engagement with African countries in the area of peace and security. China is consolidating its involvement in multilateral peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions in the continent while also increasingly trying to institutionalise its security presence there. In 2012, the China-Africa Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Security was established to mark a turning point in the China-Africa relationship as discussions on peace and security in Africa became more prominent. Thanks to the Cooperative Partnership, the two parties have held regular China-Africa forums on peace and security, train and exchange more security personnel, and even cooperate with police and law enforcement.”

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Crédit photo: GovernmentZA used with permission CC BY-ND 2.0

This content has been updated on 13 September 2023 at 16h59.