What The U.S. Election Means For China-Africa Relations: The Chinese Perspective

As the United States and the world anxiously anticipate the outcome of the 2020 US Presidential election, we reached out to some people in China to get their perspective. They shared how they are feeling about the elections and their take on the impact of the final results on Sino-Africa Relations.

The questions asked were: 

1. How do you feel about the ongoing presidential election in the USA? 
2. What is your take on the impact of the final results on China-Africa Relations? 

Daisy Xu: born and raised in China. After studying humanities in the U.S., she worked as an education consultant for several years. She just graduated from an international journalism program this year and wants to work in the news media industry.

“Four years ago I was studying in the U.S. On the election night, folks at my dorm were rooting hard for Hilary but had to swallow the upsetting reality. Their emotion was contagious. I felt frustrated for a long time. But distance and time have made a difference. I’m in China now, without voters shouting to my ears, looking at the election as a detached outsider. Comparing to the final result, I just want it to be over. The past few months were filled with madness in politics and people were divided. Things should get less intense after all those campaigns.

In my opinion, regardless of the result, for some people, China-Africa relations always seem problematic. It means the world’s second-largest economy is strengthening ties with countries that traditionally do not ally with the West. Parties change in the U.S. political system, but its diplomatic strategies remain largely the same. China-Africa relations have had a lot of accomplishments so far and also have a long way to go.”

Zheng Dengrui

“My intuition about America’s ongoing election is that it is in a state of disorder. As for who is elected President, many Chinese just like me don’t care about it. Whether it is Biden or Trump, after all, it is America’s own business. But Trump may be the most unfavorable one. 

In my opinion, the result of the U.S. election should have little impact on China-Africa relations. The friendship between China and Africa, or the diplomatic relations between China and Africa, has existed for a very long time, and America has tried to thwart it. Now, with China’s growing power, America’s influence on China-Africa relations is becoming weak. So I think the relationship between China and Africa won’t be influenced much by the elections. I believe China will go far in its continuing efforts to open up to the world irrespective of the results and Africa-China relations will continue flourishing. ”

Guanxu Huang: Student

“Well, I think if Biden wins, it will be better because Trump has been bad in some way, so Americans feel sad and maybe some feel angry.

In my opinion, China and African countries are friends, so I think China will keep helping African countries.”

Du Zuo: PhD, Ancient Chinese literature

“Not feeling anything much, after all, I don’t have a voting right.

The history of China-Africa relations has been relatively stable, hence they might be relatively no impact. After all, for the United States, Africa is not too important. The U.S. is unlikely to want to waste time and money to go as far as Africa to curb China’s development. For geographical advantage, the U.S. would be more interested in Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, India, and other southeast Asian countries.”

Melody Ren: Hebei Normal University

“Generally speaking, both Biden and Trump  will have the same attitude towards China when they win the election. Even if Biden wins the election, his policy towards China will not be much more moderate than Trump’s. Though I understand that their actions are all in the interest of America. Personally, I don’t think Biden on the camera will be as clownish as Trump, he will at least be a good politician.

I think the relationship between China and Africa will continue to be strengthened in ties and cooperation. The U.S. is still a superpower at this stage and likes to poke its nose into other countries’ affairs (doing anything for their own interests). Since ancient times, China has not been one of those countries with interest in other countries’ affairs. For instance, during the U.S. elections these few days, we are just following for the sake of fun because Trump and Biden are so interesting. Therefore, no matter which of them is elected President of the United States, I don’t think it will stop the trend of strengthening exchanges and cooperation between China and Africa.”

Meagan Lin: Shanghai University

“In my opinion, this American election is tense and delicate, and the gap between the two sides must be very small in the end. This means that the whole process may be a bit chaotic and the competition will be extremely obvious. From the conspiracy theory, it is very likely that both sides will conduct some operations in the constituency and voting process.

I believe that no matter what the outcome of the U.S. election is, China-Africa relations will only get better and better, and the exchange of strategic partnerships will only become closer and closer.  I also believe China and Africa’s relationship has a solid foundation and could prevent some passive impact of American’s intervention. I think the bubble and fantasy of liberalism are broken to a large scale. I wish African friends could recognize our genuine heart. I wish China and Africa could continue to trust each other. If America continues to hold a zero-sum game attitude, I believe the Sino-Africa relationship would become better. I wish more African students came to China and exchange views with Chinese because there is a lack of substantial cultural, entertainment, and spiritual communication.”

What do you think? Let us know in the comments.

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