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[Nightdaytrader]

Chinese premier to tour seven African nations

June 08 2006 at 02:13PM

Beijing - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will visit seven African countries next week to boost relations and promote cooperation, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Thursday.

The five-day trip, beginning June 17, includes stops in Egypt, Ghana, Congo, Angola, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda, ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao said at a regular press conference.

Wen plans to meet with top officials in each country to discuss international issues, Liu said without giving any more details.

Liu said Beijing was concerned about the humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of western Sudan.

EU, US and African officials have been urging Sudan to allow a large UN peacekeeping force to replace the current African Union mission in Darfur.




At least 180 000 people have been killed and 2,5 million driven from their homes by fighting in Darfur since February 2003, when rebels from ethnic African farming villages took up arms against what they consider discrimination and oppression by the Arab-dominated government.

Over the last five years, China's trade with Africa quadrupled to $40-billion (about R268-million) in 2005, according to Assistant Foreign Minister Lu Guozheng in January. - Sapa-AP