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East Asia

I am grateful for that intervention as it saves me from making the same point. I agree entirely—there are big concerns on that issue. Human Rights Watch alleges that Chinese arms sold to the Government of Sudan have been used by the Janjaweed militia when suppressing the people of Darfur. On the Security Council, China has opposed sanctions against Sudanese leaders and insisted that the Sudanese Government be given power of veto over the deployment of a UN force in Darfur, which was needed because the African Union was unable to deal with the situation. Clearly, it is not just in Africa that we have that problem. China and Russia recently vetoed a UN Security Council proposal on Burma, which is also known as Myanmar. In Africa and elsewhere, China has played a role that, frankly, undermines the concept of good governance. China’s actions are contrary to what our own Government managed to achieve through the G8 and to the commitments made in the Commission for Africa. The German EU presidency now wishes to reactivate and take forward those commitments following the interregnum of the Russian G8 presidency. China has a growing role in Africa and, a few months ago, held a meeting attended by 40 African leaders. That shows the growing influence that China has throughout the African continent. I would be grateful if the Minister responded to those points.