Foreign Relations of Zimbabwe - People's Republic of China and The Soviet Union

People's Republic of China and The Soviet Union

The People's Republic of China supported Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union while the Soviet Union supported Joshua Nkomo's Zimbabwe African People's Union, competing militant Marxist organizations that sought an end to Rhodesia and the establishment of a one-party Communist state in its place. The PRC's initial investment in Mugabe has continued. China has invested more in Zimbabwe than any other nation with 35 companies spending over $600 million USD. The close economic relationship between Zimbabwe and China is partly driven by sanctions imposed by Western nations in response to the Zimbabwean government's "continued human rights abuses."

Li Ke, China's Vice-Minister for Economic Relations, visited Zimbabwe for 13 days in September 1980. Mugabe visited China on 13 October and met with Prime Minister Zhao Ziyang.

In June or July 2006 the Zimbabwean government secretly bought Chinese rifles, bullets, anti-riot gear and other military equipment in return for 30 tons of ivory, violating the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species which forbids the sale of ivory. Interpol and CITES, an ivory-watchdog organization, are investigating the sale. The Zimbabwean government bought six military aircraft from China in 2005 and another six aircraft from three Chinese firms on 23 August 2006. Two days later the Zimbabwe National Army said it bought 127 trucks for $1.2 million.

The Chinese government donated farm machinery worth $25 million to Zimbabwe on 21 April, including 424 tractors and 50 trucks, as part of a $58 million loan to the Zimbabwean government. The Mugabe administration previously seized white-owned farms and gave them to blacks, damaging machinery in the process. In return for the equipment and the loan the Zimbabwean government will ship 30 million kilograms of tobacco to the People's Republic of China immediately and as much as 80 million kilograms over the next five years. John Nkomo, Speaker of the House of Assembly of Zimbabwe, praised China's investment on 24 April 2007 during a state dinner in Harare held during the four-day visit of Jia Qinglin, Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, to Zimbabwe. Misheck Sibanda, the Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Edna Madzongwe, President of the Senate, cabinet ministers, and legislators from both ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change attended the dinner.