China’s Assistant Foreign Minister of Chen Xiaodong, who is also the chairman of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of the FOCAC, noted that although the situation is improving, risks and challenges facing Africa’s peace and security cannot be overlooked/CFM NEWS
ADDIS, ABABA, Ethiopia, Feb 7 – China has reiterated its commitment to ensure peace and security in Africa, in line with deliberations held at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
China’s Assistant Foreign Minister of Chen Xiaodong, who is also the chairman of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of the FOCAC, noted that although the situation is improving, risks and challenges facing Africa’s peace and security cannot be overlooked.
Over the years, he said, China has fulfilled its responsibilities as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
“Guided by the principles enunciated by President Xi Jinping for China-Africa relations, namely, sincerity, real results, amity and good faith and pursuing the greater good and shared interests, China has played a positive role in Africa’s peace and security affairs,” he said during the Dialogue on the Implementation of China-Africa Peace and Security Initiative held in Ethiopia.
He told the meeting that that throughout the process, China has been committed to four principles: playing a fair, impartial and constructive role, helping Africa build up its own peacekeeping capacity, addressing the root causes as well as the symptoms, and pursuing cooperation for win-win results.
And he was categorical that no matter how the international landscape evolves, or whatever noises individual countries may make, “China’s resolve to follow through on the new peace and security cooperation measures announced by President Xi Jinping at the FOCAC Beijing Summit and relevant consensus reach by Chinese and African leaders remains unchanged. China’s efforts to safeguard peace and stability in Africa remain unchanged. And China’s actions to participate in the peace and security affairs in Africa remain unchanged.
The dialogue in Addis was also attended by Senegalese Abroad of the Republic of Senegal Mame Baba Cissé and the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs Minata Samate-Cessouma.
Kenya was represented at the meeting by Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau, who stressed that with a strong China-Africa partnership, Africa would be able to sustain the positive trajectory it is currently experiencing in the progressive actualization of the respective African Peace and Security Governance Architectures.
Foreign ministers and representatives of 23 African countries, including members of the AU Peace and Security Council and the five countries in the Sahel region, attended and addressed the occasion.
Chen Xiaodong noted that at the successful FOCAC Beijing Summit last September, China and Africa agreed to jointly build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future. At the Summit, President Xi Jinping announced a host of new measures to strengthen China-Africa peace and security cooperation and reached important consensus with African leaders on launching the peace and security initiative. This year is the first year for implementing the Beijing Summit outcomes.
Recently, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited several African countries and the AU Headquarters, during which he reached important common understanding with African leaders on furthering China-Africa cooperation in the field of peace and security. China hopes that the Dialogue will create synergy in thinking and action between the two sides, put forward suggestions on how to implement the peace and security initiative and build momentum for China-Africa peace and security cooperation.
Chen Xiaodong noted that China and Africa enjoy ever greater common language, common aspirations and common interests as new opportunities and challenges emerge under new circumstances. There are new opportunities for us to step up cooperation on peace and security.
“China is ready to work with Africa to explore new dimensions for dialogue on peace and security policy and establish a China-Africa peace and security forum; to take new actions to build capacity on peace and security by encouraging the UN to provide financial support to the AU’s own peacekeeping operations and delivering on the military assistance to the five countries in the Sahel region; to explore new approaches to facilitate the political resolution of hotspot issues; and to implement the new measures of the peace and security initiative and formulate a plan for the utilization of the China-Africa Peace and Security Fund to promote new progress in China-Africa peace and security cooperation,” he told the meeting.
In their statements, the African delegates highly praised the historical significance of the FOCAC Beijing Summit and in particular, the new peace and security cooperation measures announced by President Xi Jinping, and applauded China’s long-standing efforts to help maintain Africa’s peace and stability. China always honors its words with actions.
The Dialogue, which is held at the most opportune time, serves as a concrete example of China’s growing efforts in implementing the Beijing Summit outcomes in the field of peace and security. The African side welcomes China’s approach to the implementation of the China-Africa peace and security initiative and believes that the relevant measures are in line with Africa’s current situation and actual needs and will give a strong boost to Africa’s capacity building on peace and security.
The African side noted that going forward, Africa hopes to strengthen communication and coordination with China in the UN Security Council and looks to China to increasing its support for Africa in conflict prevention and helping Africa realize its vision of silencing the guns in Africa by 2020 and building the African Peace and Security Architecture.
Peace and development are closely inter-linked. Africa is ready to deepen cooperation on development with China, actively implement the outcomes of the FOCAC Beijing Summit in various fields and synergize the Belt and Road Initiative and the AU Agenda 2063. Africa will work with China to safeguard multilateralism, strengthen the multilateral system, enhance communication and coordination on major international affairs including the UN Security Council reform, and jointly defend the interests of China and Africa and other members of the developing world.
Both sides spoke positively of the outcomes of the Dialogue and agreed that the Dialogue was an innovative step in strengthening peace and security cooperation between China and Africa. The Dialogue served the goals of deepening communication and dialogue on Africa’s peace and security situation, strengthening policy alignment in this field, and building synergy between peace and security actions of China and Africa, and thus achieved a complete success.
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