Today I want to provide some up-to-date information–if you are not already aware–as it relates to trade and diplomacy between China, Japan, and many countries in the African continent.

First is this story published by The Diplomat in January and picked up by the influential U.S. Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)

It is about the new tug of war between China and Japan, which has shifted territory into many African nations. While the two may be wrangling over territory in the China Sea, both are said to be playing a trading game in Africa.

Recent trips by leaders of both Japan and China to African nations have ‘morphed into a sign of ‘competition’ over Africa, the CFR states.

Read more

Meanwhile in a March 26 article, Peter Guest of the “resurrected” Newsweek magazine, writes a similar storyline about the strategy that both nations might be pursuing in Africa.

The Newsweek story with an initial sub-title Big Fish in Africa, caught my eyes first, because the title was quite enticing, and secondly because the subject of “Africa Rising” has become a hot potato, and is being thrown around for everyone’s consumption, for good or for bad.

So, now Japan has entered the fray and is seen as a credible competitor to the Chinese who already have a foothold in the place.

Read more: Japan Takes On China Far From Home—in Africa