Beijing (HN24) – China has launched a major diplomatic push in response to the increasing fears of all-out-war in Horn of Africa as this critical region enters an extraordinarily volatile and unpredictable phase.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, announced that two special envoys would undertake simultaneous rounds of shuttle diplomacy in early and mid November.
Mao pointed out that Liu Xianfa, Special Representative for African Affairs, will head to Ethiopia, Djibouti and Egypt while Zhang Chun, Special Evoy for the Horn of Africa, will head to Eritrea.
“China’s major diplomatic push carries no clear plan for peace in the Horn of Africa,” said by Ali Dhaga-cade, our political analyst in Godey, the second largest city in Somali Regional State, where China is now planning for large-scale industrial production after many years of oil and natural gas exploration around the Ogaden Basin, particularly the Calub and Hilala natural gas fields.
Dhaga-cade says “China is only safeguarding its vital interests in energy supplies, maritime trade, and regional investment.” According to Dhaga-cade, China has not publicly presented a comprehensive peace plan. He says “Chine’s immediate priorities center on preventing further escalation and keeping its oil and natural gas interests in the region safe.”
Early this year, China’s GCL and Nigeria’s Dangote Group signed a reported $4.2 billion, 25-year natural gas supply agreement that includes the construction of a major fertilizer manufacturing plant in Godey, an anticipated annual fertilizer production, and a proposed 108 kilometer gas pipeline.
Last month, two Chinese companies, GCL and Jurong Group signed a contract for the second phase of Somali Regional State’s Calub LNG project which includes construction of natural gas liquefaction facilities, gas processing infrastructure, expansion of LNG production capacity, and storage and transportation infrastructure.
Ethiopia has always seen Ogaden Basin as its major strategic economic opportunity in the country, and China’s involvement as detrimental. Therefore, As Dhaga-cade puts, containing regional conflict, China is protecting its substantial economic interests in Horn of Africa, where it maintains a military base in Djibouti. China is particularly concerned about the existing conflicts in the Horn of Africa, which could transform overlapping regional crisis into a prolonged and increasingly interconnected confrontations.
