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Oct 19, 2006 China Woos Taiwan's Remaining African Allies Beijing invites the five nations to a forum on China's ties with Africa By China Bureau Chief, Chua Chin Hon Straits Times BEIJING - CHINA is hoping to leverage on its growing clout in Africa to win over Taiwan's five remaining diplomatic allies on the continent at an upcoming forum. This attempt comes soon after Beijing successfully wooed Chad to its side in August - a move which greatly embarrassed Taipei as it forced the island's Premier to cancel a visit to the Central African country at the last minute. Beijing fired another salvo in its diplomatic battle with Taipei yesterday by announcing that it had invited Burkina Faso, Sao Tome and Principe, Swaziland, Malawi and Gambia to the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation to be held in the Chinese capital early next month. The five countries are among the 24 nations, mostly in Africa, Latin America and the Pacific, which formally recognise Taiwan instead of China. Chinese officials who briefed reporters on the forum yesterday would not say if the five countries had accepted Beijing's invitation, but noted that all other 48 African nations with diplomatic ties to China had agreed to attend the event. Ms Xu Jinghu, who heads the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of African Affairs, said China decided to invite the five Taiwan allies to show the 'comprehensiveness'' of China's cooperation with Africa. She added: 'We have sent out the invitation, but whether they will attend, that's still hard to say. But applications are still open.' China's growing clout in Africa is putting the squeeze on one of the few remaining sources of diplomatic support for Taiwan. Before Chad, the west African nation of Senegal switched recognition to Beijing last year. African countries like Lesotho and Niger made the switch in the 1990s. Taiwan is said to have doled out millions of US dollars in economic aid in order to retain its dwindling number of diplomatic allies. But observers said this is a losing battle in the face of business and investment which Beijing can now offer on a massive scale, particularly in Africa where China is increasingly turning to for energy and raw materials. China already imports about 30 per cent of its oil from Africa, and has set its sights on acquiring bigger stakes in oil and gas fields in energy-rich Angola, Sudan and Nigeria. Chinese officials at the briefing yesterday said China would like to step up energy cooperation with Africa. They added that Beijing would also be ramping up trade, investments, infrastructural development and medical aid in Africa. Sino-African trade is expected to exceed US$50 billion (S$79 billion) this year, up 26 per cent from US$39.7 billion last year, according to senior Commerce Ministry official Zhou Yabin. However, China's growing presence in Africa has also drawn criticisms from Western governments which charge that Beijing has turned a blind eye to human rights abuses in countries like Sudan in return for access to oil and gas. Such criticisms are said to have prompted some soul-searching in Beijing, but comments by officials yesterday suggested that China is far from making any major adjustments. Said Ms Xu, the senior diplomat: 'China completely supports African countries in preserving political stability, human rights and establishing democracy. 'But we stand by the one principle of not interfering in other countries' internal affairs.' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 'China completely supports African countries in preserving political stability...But we stand by the one principle of not interfering in other countries' internal affairs.' MS XU JINGHU, head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of African Affairs -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2006 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access |