BY HAILE DEMEKE
ADDIS ABABA-China’s proposed peace conference will bring the efficacy of the West’s long-held carrot-stick approach in the Horn of Africa politics to an end, a political science expert argued, adding the conference would have the viability to stabilize the turbulent region.
Political Science and International Relations Researcher and Lecturer at Dire Dawa University Surafel Getahun told The Ethiopian Herald that China’s current approach in global politics contravenes the West’s widely-used carrot-stick approach to achieve political goals. The West, particularly the U.S. has employed the approach so as to enforce the rest of the world to accept its proposal or else face severe consequences.
The academician further stated that Western powers are pursuing interventionist strategy and using different mechanisms in order to enforce the developing world to comply with their greed interests otherwise will receive harsh punishment. If any country refused the West’s dictation, the latter tended to impose sanction and other punitive measures rather than solving differences peacefully.
“China’s recent approach is in contrast to the West’s interventionist tendency and the former is helping developing countries to solve their problems in their own capacity without meddling. Accordingly, China’s peace initiative is all inclusive and it will have a significant role in enhancing peace and stability in the Horn of Africa and beyond. Also, the peace initiative demonstrates China’s commitment for inclusive dialogue rather than intervention and its respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of developing nations.”
Horn countries are dwelling efforts to ensure democratic transition and the current unfair move by Western powers will reverse this democratic process and negatively impact the region’s journey towards democratic consolidation.
Noting the U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman’s frequent visits to the region, Surafel claimed that the U.S. attempt to position one country in opposition to the other creates skepticism and makes Feltman’s mission unfruitful. The Biden Administration falsely labels the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea as anti-peace actors and overlooked TPLF’s crimes against humanity.
“The Chinese Envoy is demonstrating neutrality and supporting countries to find out their own solution without interference. The peace conference will have a significant impact and help the Western to turn their eyes from such a fruitless approach in the region.”
It is to be recalled that Chinese Special Envoy Ambassador Xue Bing said there are issues of peace and security including differences over boundaries, ethnic and religious conflicts in the Horn of Africa and countries require a continental value to resolve differences within their own reach without external interference. “Some Western countries come and tell Africans to do this and not to do that; I have felt that these countries are fed up with such an unwilling intervention in internal affairs. That is why China put forward the proposal for peace and development in the Horn of Africa.”
The Ethiopian Herald March 25/2022
