Beijing will play constructive role in pushing forward peace talks: FM

Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Ethiopian counterpart Tedros Adhanom hold a news conference during Wang’s visit to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Monday. Tiksa Negeri / REUTERS

China called on Monday for an immediate cease-fire in South Sudan and hoped for a reasonable and rational solution from the ongoing peace talks between the government and rebels.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi made the remarks on Monday in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, where he met the delegations of South Sudan's government and rebels. Wang is on a six-day visit to Ethiopia, Djibouti, Ghana and Senegal.

"As a friend of South Sudan, China is willing to play a constructive role in pushing forward the peace talks between the two sides," Wang said.

Peace talks between the South Sudanese warring parties continued on Tuesday with discussions on a possible cease-fire and the release of prisoners.

The talks, brokered by the East African regional bloc Intergovernmental Authority on Development, are aimed at ending more than three weeks of fighting in the world's newest nation.

The conflict has left thousands dead and close to 200,000 people displaced.

The fighting erupted on Dec 15, pitting army units loyal to President Salva Kiir against a loose alliance of ethnic militia forces and mutinous army commanders nominally headed by former vice-president Riek Machar, who was sacked last July.

A key sticking point has been rebel and international demands that the South Sudanese government release 11 officials close to Machar so they can participate in the talks.

China, with a large investment and peacekeeping personnel in South Sudan, is deeply concerned by the turbulence there.

Wang, while meeting his Ethiopian counterpart Tedros Adhanom on Monday, also said China is committed to supporting all efforts to resolve the current crisis in South Sudan.

Strengthening security cooperation between China and Africa is high on the agenda of Wang's current visit, given China's growing diversified interests there and the continent's urgent demand for development, observers said.

They also said that the traditional annual visit by Chinese foreign ministers to Africa sends the signal that the continent is still a supporting pillar of China's diplomatic strategy.

Xu Weizhong, an expert on African studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said China is paying more attention to peace and security in Africa, especially in South Sudan, which has witnessed an influx of Chinese personnel, investment and business activities in recent years.

According to the Chinese embassy in South Sudan, there are about 100 Chinese companies registered in South Sudan, related to fields including petroleum, construction and telecommunications.

Zhang Hongming, a researcher of West Asian and African studies with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the crisis in South Sudan had once again dealt a severe blow to businesses there, two years after South Sudan's secession from Sudan.

"The operations of Chinese companies had just got back on the right track after the tensions cooled between South Sudan and Sudan," Zhang said.

Experts said better bilateral security cooperation also serves the interests of Africa, which has developed rapidly in the past years.

"An important reason for the region's achievements is its overall stable situation. However, the past year has seen the appearance of such problems as terrorism and organized crime," said Xu, adding that security will be a major issue of consideration for Africa's future development.

But great potential for security cooperation remains to be tapped, experts said.

"Besides bilateral cooperation based on multilateral platforms, China can also help improve the continent's ability to maintain peace and security via regional cooperation organizations, such as the African Union," Xu said.

"But the detailed forms of cooperation still remain a question," he added.

AFP contributed to this story.