> and unlike the Marshall Plan, it isn't helping move these countries into China's camp in a putative global war.
China doesn't need African foot soldiers to burn away in the trenches, there are enough Chinese people to serve as cannon fodder. Sounds harsh but that's the ultimate advantage of China compared to any other military except maybe India's.
What the Chinese are doing actually is to ensure they control the world's reserves of uranium and rare-earth metals. Or, if they don't control it or the governments by puppet/bought governments directly, then by extortion a la "you give the West their uranium, we grind your economy to a halt". Or, by controlling the shipping ports in the sea countries of Africa so that resources from the landlocked countries cannot be exported, or at least the transport cost rises.
The latter strategy they are also pursuing in central Europe - they bought, for example, the port of Piraeus via Cosco.
Whoever crosses their path can be ground to pieces if the Chinese wish so. The West is too f...ing dependent on China and that's gonna bite us in our behinds.
American corporate control of Cuba sure did it well during the Cold War. Oh wait, the Cuban government nationalized everything the Americans owned.
Focusing on the levers of control given by corporate control of strategic foreign sectors ignores the ability of host countries to unilaterally seize control of those assets at their own whim. China's hold over Africa is a very tenuous grasp at best.
China doesn't need African foot soldiers to burn away in the trenches, there are enough Chinese people to serve as cannon fodder. Sounds harsh but that's the ultimate advantage of China compared to any other military except maybe India's.
What the Chinese are doing actually is to ensure they control the world's reserves of uranium and rare-earth metals. Or, if they don't control it or the governments by puppet/bought governments directly, then by extortion a la "you give the West their uranium, we grind your economy to a halt". Or, by controlling the shipping ports in the sea countries of Africa so that resources from the landlocked countries cannot be exported, or at least the transport cost rises.
The latter strategy they are also pursuing in central Europe - they bought, for example, the port of Piraeus via Cosco.
Whoever crosses their path can be ground to pieces if the Chinese wish so. The West is too f...ing dependent on China and that's gonna bite us in our behinds.