African observers encouraged by Xi's speech at FOCAC Summit

Officials and scholars in Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt and South Africa have commended Chinese President Xi Jinping's keynote speech at the 2024 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit for reaffirming China's commitment to strengthening cooperation with Africa while showing respect for African countries' self-determined development paths.

The FOCAC summit, which took place from Wednesday to Friday, was the largest diplomatic event hosted by China in recent years, with the highest attendance of foreign leaders.

Themed "Joining Hands to Advance Modernization and Build a High-Level China-Africa Community with a Shared Future," the three-day event aimed to strengthen friendship and outline future cooperation between the two sides.

President Xi delivered a keynote speech entitled "Joining Hands to Advance Modernization and Build a Community with a Shared Future" at the opening ceremony of the summit on Thursday morning.

Kouakou Rene, Member of Parliament in Cote d'Ivoire, said that Xi's speech emphasizes the need to deepen relations with Africa and Cote d'Ivoire.

"It is a speech that calls for further strengthening relations with Africa and especially the relations with Cote d'Ivoire. Today, China is the preferred partner of Cote d'Ivoire and even its largest trading partner. We need to do more to move forward in our relationship. I think that's the direction in which President Xi Jinping has launched this speech, which I find so wonderful," he said.

Nour Nada, a professor of economics at Sadat Academy for Management Science in Cairo, noted that China's growing role in Africa, featuring cooperation, non-interference, and respect for African countries' national sovereignty, sets it apart from colonial powers.

"China's role in Africa is growing and is different from colonial powers. It's the one of cooperation, of non-interference, and maintains the sovereignty of nations, and that is why it's very much welcomed in Africa. President Xi's approach in his speech and actions have been very successful in supporting the development of the African continent," he said.

The expansion of China-Africa relations will have a positive impact on relations in the Global South, noted Gert Johannes Grobler, former senior diplomat of South Africa and honorary professor at Zhejiang Normal University's Institute of African Studies.

"China is a very strong advocate of promoting the Global South. Whether we are looking at global governance, whether we are looking at economic development, the Global South is a key element. And if the relationship between Africa and China expands, it will also have an impact on Global South relationship. The three initiatives that President Xi, in addition to the concept of a shared future, is the Global Development Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative and very importantly, the Global Security Initiative - it all leads to creating a better, more stable world, which we as scholars really appreciate, and we will continue to work on it," he said.

Inaugurated at its first Ministerial Conference in Beijing in October 2000, FOCAC now has 55 members comprising China, the 53 African countries that have diplomatic relations with China, and the African Union Commission.

African observers encouraged by Xi's speech at FOCAC Summit

Cities in China's Yangtze River Delta region have triggered emergency responses, including cancellation of trains and flights, road closures, and the relocation of affected civilians, after Typhoon Bebinca made landfall in Shanghai on Monday, causing extensive disruption as it moves northwestward.

Bebinca, the 13th typhoon of the year, made landfall in the Pudong District of Shanghai around 07:30 on Monday morning.

At the time of landfall, the maximum wind speed near the eye of the storm was about 42 meters per second, making it the strongest typhoon to land in Shanghai in decades.

In preparation for the storm, the city had relocated over 410,000 residents, canceled 577 trains and 1,461 flights.

On Monday afternoon, the first flights landed at Pudong International Airport and Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai since the two airports announced on Sunday evening that all flights were cancelled because of Bebinca.

In nearby Jiangsu Province, cities including Nantong and Suzhou have been lashed by gales and strong rainfall. Expressways in parts of Suzhou, Nantong, Wuxi and Changzhou cities were closed while reduced speed limits, toll booth closures and the closures of bridges across the the Yangtze River were also put into effect.

Over 21,000 vessels have returned to ports in Jiangsu, while more than 7,700 construction sites and 315 scenic spots in the province have also been closed.

In Zhejiang Province's eastern coastal city of Zhoushan, local authorities relocated over 44,000 residents living in the danger-prone regions.

At 15:00 on Monday, China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters lowered the emergency response for Shanghai and Zhejiang from the previous Level III to Level IV, while the emergency response status for Jiangsu and east China's Anhui Province has been maintained at Level IV.

China's National Meteorological Center said that Bebinca will bring more heavy or torrential rain to Shanghai, northern Zhejiang, southern Jiangsu, Anhui and Henan in the next three days.

Emergency responses triggered across eastern China in face of Typhoon Bebinca