中国和俄罗斯一直在与非洲建立新的关系，在唐纳德·特朗普总统的领导下，美国一直在非洲努力维护自己的地位。
长期以来，中国政府一直优先考虑与非洲大陆的关系，这是中国外交官和投资者的经常停留地，中国也越来越多地寻求加强在国防领域的参与。周日，第一届中非和平与安全论坛聚集了来自50个非洲国家和非洲联盟国防部门的近100名高级代表，包括15名国防部长和总参谋长，“讨论新时代中非安全合作的新方法”，据中国军队官方网站报道。
除了主办一系列与中国习近平主席一带一路倡议相关的项目，包括价值数十亿美元的基础设施和能源项目，非洲还是中国唯一的海外军事基地，位于吉布提，美国最近指责中国军方不负责任的行为“在五角大楼自己的基地那里。
华盛顿越来越多地警告非洲国家不要接受中国的影响，但正在进行的安全论坛展示了中国与其千里之外的伙伴之间富有弹性的关系。
中国国防部国际军事合作办公室副主任宋彦超少将周三表示:“面对新形势，中非在和平与安全领域的共同语言、愿望和利益不断增加。”。"双方更密切的合作意味着拥抱新的宝贵历史机遇."
7月17日，在北京举行的首届中非和平与安全论坛上，中国国务委员兼国防部长魏凤河将军(L8，前排)与来自50个非洲国家和非洲联盟国防部门的代表合影。近年来，中国加强了与非洲的经济和军事联系，令美国感到沮丧范海贤/中国国防部
据估计，非洲总人口为12亿，比中国少2亿左右，但其2万亿美元的国内生产总值仅为世界第二大经济体中华人民共和国的六分之一。在非洲的54个国家中，约有39个签署了保证与一带一路倡议合作的文件，通过该倡议，Xi誓言通过铺设新的走廊穿过亚洲、非洲、欧洲和拉丁美洲，扩大其国家的经济足迹。
该计划引起了非洲内外的担忧，即北京方面可能会让发展中国家陷入债务困境，并将其用作对其内政的杠杆，中国官员一再否认这一点。然而，中国方法的崇拜者中有俄罗斯，它自己也在寻求在非洲发挥越来越大的影响力。
俄罗斯外长谢尔盖拉夫罗夫(Sergey Lavrov)周二在一次讨论改善莫斯科对非洲投资的会议上对商界领袖表示，“很可能有一个很好的理由关注中国的经验，中国为其企业提供国家担保和补贴，从而确保企业有能力在系统和长期的基础上开展工作。”
第二天，拉夫罗夫接见了象牙海岸外交部长马塞尔·阿蒙-塔诺，并告诉记者，俄罗斯希望“将与非洲的关系提升到一个质的不同水平”这不仅包括增加投资，还包括在安全领域做出“重大贡献”——特别是在打击伊斯兰国激进组织(伊斯兰国)、基地组织、博科圣地和青年党等圣战组织的威胁以及打击西非和东非沿海海盗方面。
据俄罗斯国家通讯社塔斯社报道，俄罗斯外交部副部长米哈伊尔·博格达诺夫(Mikhail Bogdanov)周二表示，大约35名领导人已正式确认参加即将于10月在索契举行的俄非峰会。
鲍格丹诺夫说，他相信“至少会有40名领导人来。”
科特迪瓦外交部长马塞尔·阿蒙-塔诺和俄罗斯外交部长谢尔盖·拉夫罗夫7月17日在莫斯科会谈后被看到。俄罗斯最高外交官表示，自2015年以来，俄罗斯与非洲的贸易额增长了两倍。俄罗斯外交部
虽然中国和俄罗斯吹嘘他们对非洲创纪录的贸易数字，但美国官员最近访问时，语气却大不相同:在上个月莫桑比克举行的美非商业峰会上，商务部副部长卡伦·邓恩·凯利(Karen Dunn Kelley)指出，自2014年以来，对非洲的出口下降了32%。
“我们知道美国公司提供了无与伦比的价值主张。然而，我们已经被越来越复杂、但往往不透明的外国竞争对手的商业行为所取代，”凯利说。
特朗普政府一再批评北京和莫斯科对非洲的入侵指责他们的不正当交易最终不会有利于非洲大陆的利益，当然也不会有利于华盛顿的利益。今年4月，美国非洲司令部陆军总司令斯蒂芬·汤森(Stephen Townsend)对众议院军事委员会表示，中国和俄罗斯“提供了大量军事援助和经济援助，但这种援助有很多附加条件。”
尽管如此，除了埃及，国务卿麦克·庞贝还没有去过非洲。他的前任雷克斯·蒂勒森在2017年3月目睹了他在那里的行程被打断，当时特朗普毫不客气地解雇了他，特朗普从未踏足非洲大陆。
CHINA AND RUSSIA BUILD NEW TIES WITH AFRICA AS U.S. STRUGGLES TO ASSERT ITSELF IN REGION
China and Russia have been forging new ties with Africa, a continent in which the United States has struggled to assert itself under President Donald Trump.
Beijing has long prioritized its relationship with the continent, a frequent stop for Chinese diplomats and investors, and the People's Republic has increasingly sought to boost engagement in the defense sector as well. On Sunday, the first China-Africa Peace and Security Forum brought together nearly 100 senior representatives from the defense departments of 50 African countries and the African Union, including 15 defense ministers and chiefs of general staff, "to discuss new approaches of China-Africa security cooperation in the new era," according to the official website of the Chinese armed forces.
In addition to hosting a number of projects associated with Chinese President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative involving billions of dollars worth of infrastructure and energy projects, Africa is also home to China's only overseas military base, in Djibouti, where the U.S. recently accused the Chinese military of "irresponsible actions" at the Pentagon's own base there.
Washington has increasingly cautioned African countries against accepting Chinese influence, but the ongoing security forum showcased resilient relations between China and its partners thousands of miles away.
"In the face of new situations, the common languages, aspirations and interests of China and Africa in the peace and security field have been increasing," Major General Song Yanchao, deputy director of the Chinese Defense Ministry's Office for International Military Cooperation, was cited at saying on Wednesday. "Closer cooperation between the two sides means embracing new and precious historical opportunities."
Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe (L8, front) poses for a group photo with representatives from the defense departments of 50 African countries and the African Union during the first China-Africa Peace and Security Forum in Beijing, July 17. China has boosted both economic and military ties with Africa in recent years, frustrating the U.S.FAN XIANHAI/CHINESE MINISTRY OF DEFENSE
At an estimated 1.2 billion people, Africa's combined population is about 200 million less than that of China—but its $2 trillion GDP is just a sixth of that of the People's Republic, the world's second-largest economy. Of the 54 nations in Africa, some 39 have signed documents pledging cooperation with the Belt and Road Initiative, through which Xi has vowed to expand his country's economic footprint by paving new corridors through Asia, Africa, Europe and as far as Latin America.
The plan has raised concerns within Africa and abroad that Beijing could trap developing countries in debt and use it as leverage against their internal affairs, something Chinese officials have repeatedly denied. Among the admirers of China's approach, however, was Russia, which itself has sought to project its growing influence in Africa.
At a meeting Tuesday to discuss improving Moscow's investment in Africa, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told business leaders "there is probably a good reason to pay attention to the experience of China, which provides its enterprises with state guarantees and subsidies, thus ensuring the ability of companies to work on a systemic and long-term basis."
The following day, Lavrov received Ivory Coast Foreign Minister Marcel Amon-Tanoh and told reporters that Russia wanted "to bring relations with Africa to a qualitatively different level." This included not only boosting investments, but making "a significant contribution" in the field of security—specifically in battling the threat of jihadi organizations such as the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram and Al-Shabab and combatting piracy off the coasts of West and East Africa.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, the presidential envoy for the Middle East and Africa, said Tuesday roughly 35 leaders have officially confirmed their participation in the upcoming Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi in October, according to the state-run Tass Russian News Agency.
Bogdanov said he believed that "at least 40 leaders will come."
Ivory Coast Foreign Minister Marcel Amon-Tanoh and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are seen following talks in Moscow, July 17. Russia's top diplomat said his country's trade volume with Africa had tripled since 2015.RUSSIAN MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
While China and Russia boasted about their record trade figures with Africa, the tone was very different when U.S. officials recently paid a visit: At last month's U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Mozambique, Deputy Commerce Secretary Deputy Secretary Karen Dunn Kelley noted that exports into Africa have decreased by 32 percent since 2014.
"We know that American companies offer an unrivaled value proposition. Yet, we have lost ground to the increasingly-sophisticated, but too often opaque business practices of foreign competitors," Kelley said.
The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized Beijing and Moscow's inroads into Africa, accusing them of shady dealings that would ultimately not benefit the interests of the continent, and certainly not those of Washington. In April, U.S. African Command chief Army General Stephen Townsend told the House Armed Services Committee that China and Russia were "offering a lot of military assistance and a lot of economic assistance but there's a whole lot of strings attached to that assistance."
Still, other than Egypt, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has still not traveled to Africa. His predecessor, Rex Tillerson, saw his tour there in March 2017 cut short when he was unceremoniously fired by Trump, who has never set foot on the continent.
