Quartz - May 11, 2015
In June 1954, the leaders of China, India, and Burma (now Myanmar) issued a joint statement affirming the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence—mutual
respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual
non-aggression, non-interference in each other’s internal affairs,
equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence—as the basis for
conducting international relations. Since then, China has adhered
strictly to the principle of non-interference in other countries’
domestic turmoil, as displayed prominently over the past several years
in Beijing’s response to the Syrian civil war.
However, this is not true in the shuttle diplomacy China is practicing with respect to the conflicts in Sudan and South Sudan.
There,
Chinese state-owned enterprises (mainly the China National Petroleum
Company) have invested heavily in the oil fields of Sudan for decades,
and in the oil infrastructure of South Sudan since its independence in
2011. China’s “crossing the water by feeling the stones” style of
changing its non-interference policy—a Chinese expression referring to a
methodical, pragmatic style in addressing a new problem—is happening
not just in Sudan but also in many other parts of Africa and, on a
smaller scale, in other parts of the world.READ MORE.....
