Guinea coup adds to growing knots in China’s belt and road plans
- It is the latest in a series of recent military takeovers in a strategic region for Chinese trade ambitions
- China is a key player in the Guinean economy, buying most of its bauxite and with a key stake in its iron ore reserves
The ousting of Guinean president Alpha Conde, recent military takeovers in Chad and Mali, as well as an attempted coup in Niger could complicate China’s inroads into the semi-arid Sahel region and parts of West and Central Africa.
Chad has petroleum, and it is where China’s largest oil producer China National Petroleum Corp has an operation which mostly exports to China, India and the US. There are also growing Chinese trade ties with Niger, especially in uranium exploration and mining.
The seizure of power in Guinea is the latest disruption to the region. Conde was arrested and his government dissolved at the weekend. Border closures and a nationwide curfew were imposed and quickly lifted by the coup leaders, well aware that the mining industry is the mainstay of the West African nation’s economy.
Trouble started last year when Conde altered the constitution that allowed him to run for a third term in October 2020. His win led to violent protests in the capital Conakry, with opposition terming the election a sham.
The market reacted to the political unrest in Guinea by sending aluminium prices to a 10-year high on Monday on concerns of a likely disruption to bauxite supply from the second-largest producer of the key material in the world, accounting for 22 per cent of production.