Pompeo takes dig at China on Africa trip to ‘counter Chinese influence’

US SECRETARY of State Mike Pompeo took a veiled swipe at China during a speech to Ethiopian business leaders yesterday, in an apparent amplification of US criticism that Chinese lending for big infrastructure projects pushes poor countries into debt.

The Trump administration is seeking to counter significant Chinese influence on the continent with its new Prosper Africa trade and investment strategy and a newly established development financier, the US International Development Finance Corporation.

Analysts say the latter is Washington’s attempt at an alternative to Beijing’s sweeping Belt and Road initiative, which seeks to link China by sea and land with Southeast and Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

“Countries should be wary of authoritarian regimes and their empty promises,” Pompeo said in his speech at the UN Economic Commission for Africa in the Ethiopian capital. “They breed corruption, dependency and instability, not prosperity, sovereignty and progress.”

Pompeo’s visit to Ethiopia was also designed to demonstrate support for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s political reforms despite sporadic outbreaks of political violence, said Kjetil Tronvoll, an Ethiopia expert at Bjørknes University in Oslo.

Ethiopia is due to hold an election on August 29 and Abiy has promised it will be free and fair in a break from decades of repression.

“Abiy is pleased with whatever international attention and recognition he can get to bolster his political standing and give legitimacy to his electoral race,” said Tronvoll.

Abiy announced on Tuesday after meeting Pompeo that the US would provide financial assistance to Ethiopia as it pursues reforms, but neither government announced details.

Later a senior US official said the US had already committed $37 million (R554m) to support the election, separate to the $1 billion that the US was already providing in aid.

In his speech yesterday, Pompeo named American companies, such as Chevron, Coca-Cola and Bechtel, as long-standing investors in the region.

He confirmed the US was seeking a free trade agreement with Kenya, but offered no new information about negotiations that began earlier this month in Washington.

“If there’s one thing you should know about our president – my boss – you should you know that he loves deals,” Pompeo said. | Reuters