[ducleonctor]

> No. A large part of their investments are focused is on building and owning ports and roads. This is essential for owning trade, which is how you get to own the governments of Africa.

Good to know. I wasn't aware of that. What does that mean for our supply of blood diamonds, copper and similar? Maybe they are more needed in China, now that manufacturing has and is still being outsourced to that piece of two countries?

[tpmx]

It's weird that you'd take a random internet stranger on their word. I'd kind of expect someone partaking in this debate to know about this stuff.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_and_Road_Initiative

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa%E2%80%93China_economic_...

[ducleonctor]

I was aware of "debt-trap diplomacy" (IMHO risky tactics without being able to collect the debt using force) and similar tactics, but not that the Chinese state had actually managed to setup a "colonialism-like" foothold in African countries. I assumed their policies were merely aimed at exploiting these countries in the previously "accepted" way.

Considering that our food supply also already critically depends on artificial fertilizer from African mines, why not add energy to the mix? Meaning, we have to stand up for our share of the business in any case and have certainly developed since our imperial past:

Afterall, the African savannahs and jungles do hold a great many tasty species (bats, monkeys, ...), the consumption of some of which are rumored to help with your and your comrade's lacking love life. Some members of African tribes still share these believes, may it actually be a match made in heaven?

I wonder what happens when African communities start noticing that racism and nationalism are concepts that do not exclusively apply to the guests from a century ago.