The Chinese contingent took their seats to the far right of the podium where US Rear Adm. Heidi Berg formally launched the US-led military exercise, Cutlass Express.
Cutlass, and the handful of other annual US-led drills held throughout the African continent, are a low-risk and relatively low-cost way for US Africa Command (AFRICOM) to gain and keep regional allies.
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But in Djibouti, a key Red Sea ally of the US, and throughout Africa, there’s new competition for local loyalties from China’s military, which is increasingly asserting its influence on the continent.
In 2017, China’s People Liberation Army (PLA) opened its first overseas base in Djibouti. The sprawling, gray concrete complex sits on a prime location next to one of Djibouti’s main ports — and is just a 15-minute drive from the US military’s only permanent base on the continent, Camp Lemonnier.
Source: The African nation at the center of a US-China tug of war
