From The Financial Times:
The Chinese government has intervened in Zambia‘s upcoming presidential election in a forceful sign of the commodity-hungry country’s growing economic and political clout in Africa.
Li Baodong, China’s ambassador in Lusaka, said Beijing might cut diplomatic relations with Zambia if voters elected Michael Sata, an opposition candidate, as president, Zambian media reported on Tuesday.
His remarks are the first sign of overt political interference by China in African affairs in decades, reflecting Beijing’s rapidly expanding role as an investor on the continent and as a client for long-term supplies of raw materials. China is a leading investor in Zambian copper, the country’s biggest export product by value. [Full Text]
