 "$140.5 million in military aid to training for 7,000 personnel: China vows to strengthen security ties with Africa")
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday offered to provide Africa 1 billion yuan (US$140.5 million) in military aid and training for 6,000 military personnel and 1,000 police officers, as Beijing seeks to strengthen its security ties with African countries.
According to a South China Morning Post report, in a speech to mark the opening of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit on Thursday, Xi Jinping also invited 500 young military officers to China to take part in exercises and patrols, as well as helping to clear landmines – a major concern for some countries.
While details about the package and the specific countries that will benefit are still pending, the latest commitment offers more specifics than the previous pledge made at the 2021 summit, which included participation in security projects and joint anti-terrorism and peacekeeping training exercises, reported South China Morning Post.
Unlike in 2021, Xi did not address measures to control the spread of small arms in his latest announcement.
In recent years, China has increased its military engagement with African countries as part of its broader competition for influence with the US.
According to South China Morning Post report, citing the Asia Society Policy Institute, last year, Africa ranked second only to Southeast Asia for the number of “senior-level” military meetings.
Recently, the People’s Liberation Army has been actively involved in joint exercises with African countries, including a counterterrorism drill with Tanzania and Mozambique last month.
Earlier this year, China participated in a naval exercise with Russia and South Africa, drawing attention due to South Africa’s role as a US strategic partner.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsChina has been a key training hub for African militaries, educating hundreds of senior commanders at PLA institutions.
From 2019 to 2023, it was the largest arms supplier to sub-Saharan Africa, providing 19% of total arms imports, just surpassing Russia, which supplied 17%, according to the report, citing the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
China supplies a wide range of military equipment, including small arms, drones, tanks, and armored vehicles.
Liselotte Odgaard, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think tank, told South CHina Morning Post that China’s long-term focus on Africa meant it did not just see it as “a source of strategic resources” but was also trying “to build political relations and listen to the views and interests of African elites which were not a high priority for most Western countries”.
“The Chinese influence also has a security dimension, which Chinese military aid reflects," Odgaard was quoted as saying.
““Only now is the West trying to seriously counter China’s influence by listening to the voices of Africa … The question is if such efforts are too little too late,” Odgaard added.
China has extended military aid to nearly every African nation to bolster ties and safeguard its economic interests.
Recently, the PLA provided Benin with howitzers and related equipment in response to rising militant attacks linked to the broader Islamist insurgency in West Africa.
Djibouti, home to China’s first overseas naval base, frequently hosts PLA warships for anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden and off Somalia.
Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said military support to Africa could be part of Beijing’s use of the Belt and Road Initiative to “gain greater control and presence in geo-strategically important regions”.
“China’s use of the Belt and Road Initiative is designed to enable and facilitate Chinese access to critical strategic resources and also key port facilities around the world to support the flow of those resources to sustain China’s economic growth.
“The military support in question could be part of this process – to get African states dependent on China for their security, and they would have little choice in the matter given their dependency on Beijing through (belt and road),” South China Morning Post quoted Davis as saying.
Ilaria Carrozza of the Peace Research Institute Oslo told South China Morning Post that Beijing views military aid as a cost-effective means to safeguard economic interests and enhance cooperation.
However, Carrozza noted that the 1 billion yuan figure remains below typical US military aid levels and is unlikely to significantly boost African military and police capabilities.
Nonetheless, it underscores Africa’s ongoing strategic importance to China, she added.
With inputs from agencies
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