Africa has gone Chinese. For the past ten years the People’s Republic of China has been building up its investments in Africa, where it is now a major player. Beijing’s policies have a negative effect on both France’s economic influence and its political role, which Paris has often had to accept with resignation. Nevertheless, at the last France-Africa summit, in February 2007, President Jacques Chirac described China’s engagement with Africa as positive. So should China really be considered a threat to our interests?
France and the Chinese Presence in Africa
For the past ten years the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been multiplying its investments in Africa; this economic and commercial presence has been the subject of a number of studies and commentaries. Beijing’s strategy on the Dark Continent is often presented under three main heads:
• to diversify its suppliers of hydrocarbons;
• to widen its export markets; and
• to increase its political influence.(1)
This presence has a negative effect on both France’s economic influence and its political role, which Paris has often had to resign itself to accepting. Is it a real threat to France’s interests?
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