The Evolution of China’s Engagement with Sudan in the Context of BRICS: An Asantean View

Abstract

This article seeks to discuss China’s engagement with Sudan from an Afrocentric perspective.1 It is noted that much of the literature on this research theme is underpinned by state-centric theories which are rooted within the Westernised standpoint. This situation has resulted in a partial understanding of China’s engagement with Sudan. The other weakness of the extant literature on the theme of this article is that China’s foreign policy towards Sudan is often [mis]interpreted and [mis]analysed due to the studies focusing on China-Africa relations instead of China’s relations with Sudan as a sovereign African state specifically.2 It is argued in this article that the Bandung Conference of 1955 served as a watershed moment for AsiaAfrica relations and China has since then benefitted in its relations with Asia-African states. This was also the case with the establishment of the BRICS grouping in 2009. To this end, the two central questions grappled with in this article are: (1) To what extent have SinoSudanese agreements and protocols strengthened and tested the relations between the two states since 1959? (2) What are the implications of this for BRICS’ intent to build a new paradigm of relations with African countries? Relatedly, it is observed that the failure to understand the relations under review in their historical and continental context is one of the weaknesses of the Westernised accounts. As such, an alternative and nuanced account of the above is crucial because the current nature of Sino-Sudan relations can best be understood when located within a historical and continental context. Methodologically, this article largely depends on the cauldron of document and discourse analysis in its broadest form.