Vol 2 (AAC) No 7 | JAPAN Hirofumi Nakasone 22nd May 2009 Foreign Minister, Japan Born in 1945, the Keio University graduate began his career with Asahi Chemical Industry in 1968 but turned to politics in 1983 after his father, Yasuhiro Nakasone, became...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 7 | CHINA Yuan Nangsheng 22nd May 2009 China's Ambassador to Zimbabwe After Mao Zedong completed his first Soviet-style Five Year Plan in 1954, China's economic problems deteriorated sharply. That year, China's Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Yuan Nansheng, was born, and his...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | SOUTH AFRICACHINA Ditching the Dalai Lama 16th April 2009 The barring of the Dalai Lama appalls Archbishop Desmond Tutu but gets strong backing from the finance and foreign ministers The South African authorities' refusal of a visa to the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet in late March shows how the 'One China' policy extends into relations with...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | SOUTH AFRICACHINA This wheel's on fire 16th April 2009 China may be popular amongst some politicians, but support on the ground can be much thinner. In spite of increased trade and warmer relations, there has been a rise in...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | LIBERIACHINA The Bong revival 16th April 2009 New facts about China Union's iron ore deal reveal the failure and high costs of Monrovia's negotiating tactics On closer scrutiny, the agreement between China Union and the Liberian government to resume iron ore production at Bong Mines hugely favours the Chinese company with only a minimal share...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | LIBERIACHINA Deal or no deal 16th April 2009 The Minerals Development Agreement between China Union and the Liberian government, which Africa-Asia Confidential has seen, offers China Union royalty payments and tax exemptions that are far more generous than the...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | NIGERIACHINAINDIASOUTH KOREA From win-win to lose-lose 16th April 2009 Asia's barter deals for Nigerian oil were politically charged and have been economically disastrous Almost all Nigeria's countertrade deals with Asia have been abandoned after investigations by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's officials into their viability.
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | NIGERIACHINAINDIASOUTH KOREA Abuja's Asian connections 16th April 2009 South Korea: Nigeria is South Korea's third largest trading partner and the largest market in Africa for Korean construction companies. In January 2006, Korean companies were working on 60 projects valued...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | CONGO-KINSHASACHINA Debt, markets and Beijing 16th April 2009 All three sides - the IMF, Kinshasa and Beijing - say there is little room for compromise on this month's debt relief talks Kinshasa's negotiators are preparing for more talks with the International Monetary Fund's debt experts at the Fund and World Bank's spring meetings in Washington on 25-26 April. The fundamental problem remains...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | CONGO-KINSHASACHINA Big numbers on Congo's telecoms projects 16th April 2009 China's Huawei and China International Telecommunication Construction Corporation are working on two information technology projects for Congo-Kinshasa's Ministère des Postes, Téléphones et Télécommunications (MPTT, Post and Telecommunications Ministry). China Exim Bank...