This week, top Chinese diplomats held meetings with their counterparts from Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Egypt, Sri Lanka, the United States (US), Bangladesh and Iran.
On Monday, China held meetings with Kyrgyzstan, Egypt, Zambia, the US, and Iran:
Kyrgyzstan
President Xi Jinping had a telephonic conversation with his Kyrgyz counterpart Sadyr Japarov. In the meeting, Xi stressed that the two countries must continue to “promote the steady and stable development of the practical cooperation,” which includes the advancement of the Belt and Road initiative (BRI) alongside deepening cooperation in “economy, trade, connectivity, agriculture and other fields”. He also added that while Chinese companies will be encouraged by the government to invest in Kyrgyzstan, China would also “welcome more high-quality agricultural products” from Kyrgyzstan. He further agreed that the allies must strengthen security cooperation, and “maintain the security and stability” of the region at large.
In response, Japarov thanked China for helping the country mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by facilitating the supply of vaccines and said that the Central Asian country firmly supported China’s core interests, “including those related to Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Taiwan and [...] the one-China principle”.
Egypt
In hi teleconference with Egyptian President Abdul Fatah Al-Sisi, President Xi assured that China will work with Egypt to strengthen vaccine cooperation and support more Chinese firms to invest in Egypt. He also stressed that both allies must jointly make progress on BRI and expand cooperation in “infrastructure construction, production capacity, and technology” to enhance their comprehensive strategic partnership. In response, Sisi congratulated Xi on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and acknowledged that 2021 marks the 65th anniversary of Egypt-China diplomatic relations.
United States (US)
Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu had a phone conversation with US Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley regarding the Iranian nuclear issue. Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to the settlement of the issue and agreed to step up a dialogue to push the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) back to “the right track at an early date”.
The JCPOA is a nuclear agreement signed by Iran with China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom (UK) which caps Tehran’s uranium enrichment to 3.67%. However, Iran currently enriches its stockpile up to around 4.5%. While American President Joe Biden has reiterated his commitment to re-join the previously abandoned JCPOA, he has called upon Iran to take the first step and ensure full compliance. However, Iran continues to insist that the US make the first move and re-join the accord along with withdrawing economic sanctions.
Iran
Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu also spoke with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the same issue. Both diplomats agreed that the US must return to the JCPOA and lift sanctions on Iran “as soon as possible,” because it “holds the key to breaking the current deadlock” and upholding regional “peace and stability”.
Zambia
Zambian President Edgar Lungu met with Yang Jiechi, a Member of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and the Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, in Lusaka. On the same day, Yang Jiechi also met with Zambian Foreign Minister Joseph Malanji and other cabinet members.
Yang appreciated the “all-weather friendship” between the two countries and said that China is ready to “strengthen close coordination” with the African continent, including Zambia, and work towards new achievements in China-Africa cooperation. In response, the Zambian delegation conveyed Lunar New Year greetings to the Chinese people and said that Zambia will “firmly adhere to the one-China principle”.
Back in October, Zambian Treasury Secretary Fredson Yamba announced that the country had reached an agreement with the China Development Bank (CDB) to defer debt repayments by six months to April 2021. At this stage, it is not clear whether this deadline will be extended.
On Tuesday, Chinese diplomats met with delegations from Bangladesh and Kuwait.
Bangladesh
Vice Foreign Minister Luo Zhaohui met with Bangladeshi Ambassador to China Mahbub Uz Zaman. Luo informed the Ambassador that China is willing to attend the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the nation’s independence and the 100th birth anniversary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who is considered to be Bangladesh’s Father of the Nation.
Further, Mahbub Uz Zaman thanked China for its “long-term support and assistance” for Bangladesh’s economic and social development through the BRI. Under the framework of the BRI in Bangladesh, China is assisting in the construction of the Padma Bridge Rail Link Project (PBRLP).
Kuwait
Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah met with Yang Jiechi in Kuwait City. On the same day, Yang Jiechi also met with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah.
China appreciated Kuwait’s continued positive role in pushing forward the negotiations on closing a free trade agreement (FTA) between China and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which was first announced in 2004. So far, the two parties have held five rounds of negotiations and have reached an agreement on the majority of issues.
On Wednesday, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi participated in phone conversations with his counterparts from Sri Lanka and Mongolia.
Sri Lanka
In his conversation with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, Wang promised that China is ready to continue to provide vaccine assistance to the country. In addition, he said that both countries needed to make “solid” progress in expanding bilateral cooperation via the BRI, under which China is developing the Colombo Port City and the Hambantota Port into “two major engines to boost Sri Lanka’s economic development,” while also “pushing” for its industrialisation and “capacity for independent development”.
Gunawardena raised the issue of how “some Western countries led by the United States,” have “exploited” issues of human rights and accused Sri Lanka in the UN Human Rights Council “without any solid evidence”. This is in reference to the United Nations (UN) rights chief Michelle Bachelet calling for an International Criminal Court investigation into Sri Lanka’s Tamil separatist conflict. Following this, she also sought sanctions against top generals and others accused of war crimes in the country. Sri Lanka accused this move of being “politically motivated”. In this regard, Wang agreed that “some Western countries are used to pressuring developing countries on the pretext of human rights”. Gunawardena said that Sri Lanka appreciated China’s “fair stance on human rights issues”.
Mongolia
In his telephonic conversation with the new Mongolian Foreign Minister Batmunkh Battsetseg, Wang said that the two sides “need to speed up” the development of China’s BRI projects in the country, alongside Mongolia’s Development Road Initiative.
Under this framework, China is helping build the China-Mongolia-Russia-Economic Corridor (CMREC), which will help facilitate trade between Mongolia and its neighbours. It will also give Mongolia access to land routes to the European Union (EU) and seaports in Asia.
According to the press release from Beijing, the minister also stressed that the neighbours need to make a speedy recovery from the pandemic “as soon as possible” by expanding the areas of cooperation and upgrading the level of cooperation. In response, Batmunkh Battsetseg thanked China for the recent delivery of COVID-19 vaccines and expressed hope to further deepen cooperation with China through the BRI.