China and Africa: the partnership rediscovered and the implications for the European Union

China is becoming an increasingly important actor in international political and economic relations. The pace of Chinese economic growth triggers a progressively growing demand for natural resources. After launching the "open-door" policy in the Chinese modern history (which attracted the important sources of capital inflows), the Chinese government introduced a "go-out" strategy for the Chinese companies to integrate them into the global structures. This strategy has its direct impacts on developing countries, where the Chinese presence is apparent the most. China is cooperating with all of the developing regions; however, sixty-year long cooperation with Africa is outstanding in many ways. In this continent China has to encounter other traditional actors -- European Union above all, as Africa constitutes a centrepiece in European development cooperation policy. The aim of this master thesis is to describe the shape and evolution of long-term Sino-African relations into today's "strategic partnership", which is being regarded as "rediscovered" in this thesis, and to conclude with the implications for the EU policy. To achieve this, the thesis is divided into three chapters. First chapter deals with the theoretical basis for the shape of Sino-African relations, in broad terms of Chinese foreign policy towards developing countries. The second chapter looks onto actual, mainly economic and developmental, impacts of the Chinese "go-out" strategy on Africa. The thesis indicates the approach of the European Union to the rediscovered partnership.