After Tanzania turned its back, my country strengthened cooperation with other countries.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, China has always attached great importance to friendly relations with African countries. Although our own economy was still relatively backward at that time, we still actively assisted African countries.
For a long time, our relations with African countries have been very good, and Africa also has our "hardcore" friends. Among them, Tanzania is our long-term partner.
Since China began to provide assistance to Tanzania in the 60s of the last century, Sino-Tanzania relations have always been very friendly. However, a few years ago, due to the provocation of some major countries, difficulties suddenly arose in the Bagamoyo port project jointly built by China and Tanzania, and Tanzania suspended cooperation with China for a time.
It wasn't until Tanzania was facing a difficult situation that they realized the true face of those great powers.
Located in eastern Africa, Tanzania has a land area of one million square kilometers and is one of the least developed countries in the world, although it is one of the top African countries, but its economic performance is very poor.
In the 60s of the last century, my country established diplomatic relations with Tanzania and spared no effort to provide economic and military assistance to Tanzania. One of the most striking economic aid projects is the Tanzania-Zambia Railway, which is a transportation artery connecting East Africa and South Africa, with a total length of more than 1,860 kilometers, which was fully completed and put into trial operation in 1975, and is one of the largest foreign aid projects in China.
In addition, the Tanzania-Zambia Railway achieved the feat of connecting the Atlantic Ocean with the Indian Ocean for the first time in African history by rail passenger transport. The Tanzania-Zambia Railway not only transports Chinese goods to mineral-rich African regions, but also brings back a large number of copper, cobalt and other mineral deposits for China.
Our country has benefited a lot from the import of resources, and diplomatically from the success of the Tanzania-Zambia railway. Zambia and Tanzania have never wavered on the "one-China" issue.
In the military field, we have also provided much assistance to Tanzania. In the 60s of the last century, our country also accepted the commission of Tanzania** to train the Tanzanian army.
As we all know, the combat level of the African teams is uneven, and there have even been cases where two armies have been shooting at close range for 10 minutes without one
However, the Tanzanian army trained by the People's Liberation Army is different, their army establishment and combat regulations are highly similar to those of the People's Liberation Army of China, and the soldiers have perfectly inherited the military quality and spiritual outlook of the Chinese people, so they are called the "East African Liberation Army".
In 1978, Uganda** Amin came to power in a coup d'état and invaded Tanzania. Despite the fact that Tanzania was at a disadvantage by surprise attacks in the early days, the trained Tanzanian army quickly recovered and overwhelmingly defeated the Ugandan army.
Later, Libyan ** Gaddafi tried to aid Uganda with Soviet**, including Katyusha rocket artillery and T55 tanks, but the PLA-trained Tanzanian army, with its excellent tactics and flexible skills, finally won the victory, defeating not only Libya, but also liberating Uganda, earning the reputation of the "East African Liberation Army".
There is a deep friendship between China and Tanzania, so after the economic development of the People's Republic of China, the help to Tanzania has been increasing, not decreasing.
In 2013, China signed a memorandum of cooperation with Tanzania to develop the port of Bagamoyo, planning to invest 10 billion US dollars to build it into an international port connecting China, the Middle East and European markets.
Bagamoyo, an ancient city in Tanzania, not only has a rich history, but it is also home to the country's famous and important port, Bagamoyo Port.
Under the framework of the cooperation agreement, China will provide technical support and jointly invest with China and Oman in the construction of the port of Bagamoyo, which will become the largest port in Africa.
Tanzania hopes to use this project to replicate China's special zone development model, and build Bagamoyo into a domestic economic engine, using the port to drive the development of the mainland.
To this end, Tanzania has promised to lease the port to China for 99 years after its completion. However, after the groundbreaking ceremony was held in 2015, the project encountered a series of difficulties.
First, the transition of power in Tanzania led to the project being relegated to the back burner; Subsequently, the construction of the project was hampered and progress was slow as Tanzania was unable to raise sufficient funds.
Despite the challenges, all parties remain committed to promoting the construction of the port of Bagamoyo and look forward to its early realization of its role in promoting Tanzania's economic development.
The construction of the Bagamoyo port project has been a bumpy one. Tanzania, which was supposed to raise US$28 million to resettle the displaced people, only raised US$1.5 million in 2017, and finally had to give up its stake in the port as compensation in exchange for financial support from Chinese companies.
Subsequently, more than 600 Chinese enterprises officially invested billions of dollars in construction. However, in 2019, the project was abruptly and unilaterally shelved by the late Tanzania** Magufuli.
He claimed that the project had "unfair and sensitive" conditions and could jeopardize the capacity and value of the port of Dar es Salaam. In order to weaken China's influence in Africa, Britain and Japan have also announced that they will help Tanzania, and even demanded that "cooperation with China in port projects be stopped".
The British side said they could help Tanzania renovate its original port at a lower rate, while the Japanese side said they could help Tanzania build a cross-border bridge with Uganda in return.
Misled by the United Kingdom and Japan, Tanzania unilaterally halted the Bagamoyo port project in an attempt to negotiate with China to shorten the port lease. However, my country categorically disagrees with Tanzania's demands, and as a result, the port of Bagamoyo, a project of vital importance for Tanzania, has been suspended.
Although we have paid part of the losses in this regard, Tanzania has suffered an even greater blow, as we have quickly found a country of equal geographical importance to invest in, while the "assistance" of the United Kingdom and Japan is far away.
When the Bagamoyo port project faced difficulties, China has begun to explore new investment directions, and finally locked in Djibouti. Djibouti is located in Africa, a small but strategically located location that is even better than Tanzania because it controls the management of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, and is a necessary place for Mediterranean countries and countries in Southeast Asia and East Africa to carry out maritime **, and has a vital strategic location.
After the cooperation with Tanzania fell into difficulties, China's "One Belt, One Road" plan will take Djibouti as an important node. In Djibouti, we have made significant investments.
First, we built Africa's first modern standard-gauge electric railway, the Ajibouti-Djibouti Railway. The Jakarta-Djibouti Railway connects Ethiopia and Djibouti with a total length of more than 750 kilometers, shortening the freight time from Ethiopia to Djibouti from 7 days to 12 hours, and is known as the "Tanzania-Zambia Railway in the New Era".
Second, we have helped Djibouti build a world-class port, transforming it from a backward port into an important port that can radiate to neighboring countries. China's aid has not only boosted Djibouti's economy, but also helped it achieve leapfrog development.
According to statistics, Djibouti's per capita income has increased from $300 to $2,700 in just three years, which is undoubtedly an astonishing leap.
The overseas bases established by our country in Djibouti provide strong logistical support for our army and navy, and at the same time help to protect the safety of our merchant ships and the personal safety of our citizens.
In addition, this base provides an important guarantee for the interests of our country. For example, our country has on several occasions set out from this base to safely escort citizens to Djibouti and, on that basis, to send them home safely.
At this base, Djibouti is developing just right, while Tanzania is in trouble. This is because after Britain and Japan found out that Tanzania had stopped cooperating with China, they began to stall for time with various reasons and excuses, trying to "delay" the project they had promised by using the word "delay".
Originally, Britain and Japan did not really help Tanzania, they wanted to weaken China's position in the world. In the process of "aid" in Africa, they always ask for some "political conditions", how can they be satisfied with only "a little" benefits?
After many delays, Tanzania realized that they had been deceived, and they realized that only China was the only friend who was willing to help Africa. Therefore, the Tanzanian side once again turned to China for help.
Tanzania is one of the least developed countries in the world, so it is not able to complete the construction of the port of Bagamoyo on its own. However, the Western powers cannot be completely relied upon. In this case, China once again seems to be the best choice for Tanzania.
The speaker of Tanzania's National Assembly said at the end of April 2021 that the Bagamoyo port project would be restarted, noting that the former Magufuli may have been misled and made the wrong decision after a site visit.
At this time, it is necessary to re-evaluate the project and restart it in due course. On June 30, 2021, Tanzania's mainstream ** Citizen newspaper reported that Tanzania** Hassan announced that it would restart negotiations on the Bagamoyo port project.
Immediately afterwards, Switzerland** also disclosed that Tanzania has reopened a dialogue with its Chinese partners to promote the resumption of the project. According to expert analysis, Tanzania's move is a wise move, and it also corrects the wrong judgment made by the former Magufuli.
First of all, the expert pointed out that the Bagamoyo port project was originally proposed by the Tanzanian Port Authority, and a feasibility study was conducted at the Port of Hamburg in Germany, and the Chinese side only applied for investment and did not interfere with Tanzania's sovereignty.
Second, although the total investment in the port of Bagamoyo is as high as 10 billion US dollars, it is mainly invested by China and Oman, and Tanzania** will not be burdened with a huge debt burden or even fall into a debt trap.
Thirdly, the 99-year concession period previously agreed upon by the two parties is in line with both international practice and local laws and regulations in Tanzania. Although there is also an international precedent for a 33-year franchise, this is also determined by agreement between the parties.
For investors, they need a reasonable amount of time to ** the cost of investment. Finally, the construction of the port of Bagamoyo will not have an impact on the port of Dar es Salaam.
Because by 2030, the port of Bagamoyo is expected to reach its limits in terms of throughput capacity, and at that time, the port of Bagamoyo has the potential to be a powerful addition. It is clear that the whole of Tanzania is trying to "save" the Bagamoyo port project.
According to the plan, the port will be able to handle nearly 20 times the cargo of the port of Dar es Salaam, which will undoubtedly greatly promote the development of Tanzania's economy.
After the shelf of the port of Bagamoyo in Tanzania, China has become more cautious about investment, and has not yet made a clear statement on the matter, which seems to indicate that China is thinking carefully about continuing to invest.
In order to maintain friendly relations with China and promote the resumption of the Bagamoyo port project, Tanzania's foreign minister said at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in November 2021 that Tanzania and China are "eternal friends", and after the new ** takes office, Tanzania is ready to seize more strategic cooperation opportunities to achieve common prosperity on both sides.
Although China is still conducting in-depth research, from the perspective of national interests, the construction of the port of Bagamoyo is conducive to us opening up new routes, avoiding the Strait of Malacca, establishing our own energy channels, and at the same time facilitating us to open up new routes.
In addition, there is a long traditional friendship between our country and Tanzania. Therefore, as long as the two sides reach appropriate conditions in the negotiations, we believe that China and Tanzania will soon restart the Bagamoyo port project, further deepen the cooperation between China and Tanzania, and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results for both sides.