On a rare visit to the Gulf of Guinea on Sunday, three Chinese military ships made a five-day layover in the seas around Lagos, the nation’s commercial hub, according to reports from the Nigerian and Chinese governments on Monday.
Rear Admiral Ayo-Vaughan, spokesperson for the Nigerian navy, told AFP on Monday that “this is a friendly visit” meant to “improve diplomacy” between China and Nigeria.
On Sunday, one of the ships anchored at Lagos’ Apapa port, where a ceremony was conducted. According to Cui Jianchun, the Chinese ambassador to Nigeria, this “visit was an important event in recent years.”
This event “testifies to a high level of trust” between the two countries, which will “strengthen” the ties between the two navies, particularly in terms of “jointly resolving regional security problems”, he added, quoted in a statement published on the embassy’s website.
A crucial maritime route bordering countries rich in hydrocarbons, the Gulf of Guinea, which stretches over 5,700 kilometres between Senegal and Angola, has for several years been the new black spot for global piracy, even if acts of piracy have recently slowed down.
China has very close economic and financial ties with Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country. In particular, it has invested massively in infrastructure, such as the new deep-water port of Lekki, on the outskirts of Lagos.
When it comes to security cooperation, Nigeria, which is plagued by serious insecurity including piracy and jihadist conflict in the north-east, looks mainly to the United States, one of its main suppliers of military equipment.
Last year, US defence officials expressed concern about Chinese plans for a military base on the Atlantic coast of West Africa.
