China to establish first overseas military base in Africa

China is set to install “a few thousand” troops and staff at its first ever overseas military base, reads a report in the Financial Times, the first permanent overseas deployment by Chinese armed forces. The new naval facility will sit in the same city as America’s sprawling African military headquarters in Djibouti, where the US has a 4,500-strong base. The move underscores concerns that China is making a policy shift to assert itself as a global military power. Djibouti occupies a vital strategic position at the southern entrance to the Red Sea from the Indian Ocean, with 30 per cent of the world’s shipping passing close by.