China Helps Horn of Africa Eliminate Disagreements, Envoy Says

China recently launched the Outlook on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa initiative to gather East African countries to discuss peace and security in the region. Xue Bing, special envoy for the Horn of Africa, outlined the main points in China's view of the program's development.

China underpins Horn of Africa nations so they can eliminate disagreements, Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Affairs of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Xue Bing has said. He made the statement as he answered journalists' questions concerning China’s support for the region as part of the "Outlook on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa" initiative.

According to the official, the crucial condition for achieving long-term stability, development and prosperity in the African region is to rule out the geopolitical games imposed from the outside, as well as to focus on the triple security challenges, development and governance in the Horn of Africa.

Recently, China initiated dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Iran in order to bridge the differences between the two countries. As a result of talks held in Beijing, the parties have come to an agreement and defined a roadmap and a timeline for further improving relations.

Xue used the Saudi-Iran case as an example of a successful dispute resolution via dialogue and consultations.

The rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran revolves around some key issues, including their conflicting ideologies (Sunnis versus Shiites), pan-Arab issues such as the Palestinian issue, and their desire to become the dominant force in the Middle Eastern region.

In his speech, the envoy also recalled the first Peace Conference of the Horn of Africa, held on June 20-21, 2022, at which a joint statement and an action plan were adopted to embody many vital elements of consensus on the independent settlement of regional issues through dialogue and negotiations and the acceleration of regional integration.

Independently, Xue touched upon Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s recent visit to Ethiopia, outlining that Qin reiterated the eagerness and determination of the Chinese outlook to pursue strength through unity to achieve development and prosperity.

The Chinese envoy to the region said that China has integrated this outlook in the concept paper on the Global Security Initiative, and explained that the country will actively carry it out, supporting the institutionalization of the peace conference and the development of demonstration cooperation projects.

He further reaffirmed China's willingness to cooperate with the countries of the region in order to promote peaceful regional development and create a closer Sino-African community with a common future based on the realization of this outlook.

"We respect the stature of people in various regions and countries as the masters of their own and oppose geopolitical competition by external forces. China has no intention to and will not seek to fill the so-called vacuum or put up exclusive blocs," Xue outlined.

Emphasizing that China has no interests of its own in the Horn of Africa or any other region, Xue said that the country will promote security and stability, be a partner in development and prosperity, and will support the development of the Horn of Africa on the basis of solidarity.

The Horn of Africa has been long suffering from a number of military conflicts and wars. In particular, the recent Tigray war in Ethiopia (civil conflict, which lasted from November 3, 2020, to November 3, 2022), as well as clashes between the Somalian government and al-Qaeda*-affiliated Al-Shabaab* militant group, have troubled the region for years.

The First China-Horn of Africa Peace, Good Governance and Development Conference was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from June 20 to 21, 2022. The high-level regional conference was attended by ministers and senior government officials from Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, and Ethiopia, which were joined by Xue Bing.

*Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab are terrorist organizations outlawed in Russia and other countries