Mozambique: President says China willing to help combat insurgents

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Mozambique: President says China willing to help combat insurgents

1:40 CAT | 06 Sep 2024

Image: Presidente Filipe Nyusi /Facebook

Mozambique’s President Filipe Nyusi said on Thursday that China has pledged to indicate how it will help in the fight against terrorism, pointing out that this challenge “is collective” and requires the mobilisation of all kinds of support.

“They are going to say exactly what they are going to do” in terms of help in the fight against the armed groups operating in Cabo Delgado province, northern Mozambique, said Nyusi.

The head of state was speaking at a press conference in Beijing during his six-day visit to the People’s Republic of China.

“We were also pleased to hear that they will continue to provide military assistance, especially in common defence, such as the fight against terrorism,” said the head of state.

China, continued the head of state, has already said that it intends to help Mozambique with coastal protection to combat the various types of crime that take place at sea, such as drug trafficking.

“They went deeper [in their commitment to cooperation] when they said they would train more military personnel (…). It’s not bad to go to any country [to ask for military support] because [the fight against terrorism] is a collective combat,” President Nyusi emphasised.

As part of his six-day visit to China, the Mozambican head of state was taking part in the 9th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which kicked off on Wednesday in Beijing, “a platform for dialogue” between China, the African Union Commission and “the 53 African countries that maintain diplomatic relations with China”, according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During his visit, Nyusi met with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and members of the Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.

READ: Joint military exercise between China, Mozambique and Tanzania underway

Since October 2017, the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.

The last major attack took place on 10 and 11 May on the district headquarters of Macomia, with around a hundred insurgents sacking the town, causing several deaths and heavy fighting with the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and Rwandan soldiers, who are also supporting Mozambique in the fight against the rebels.

Since the beginning of August, different sources on the ground, including the local force, have reported intense clashes in the forests of the administrative post of Mucojo (Macomia), involving helicopters, armoured vehicles and heavily armed men, with reports of shootings in places considered to be hiding places for these groups.

Source: Lusa