African flags have been flown over Tiananmen Square. Leaders of African nations have been greeted by dancers, honor guards and children waving flags. They have been escorted in extensive motorcades past banners celebrating “A Shared Future for China and Africa” and giant, elaborate flower arrangements.

天安門廣場上飄揚著非洲國家的國旗。非洲國家的領導人受到了舞者、儀仗隊和揮舞旗幟的兒童的歡迎。在浩浩蕩蕩的車隊護送下，他們經過街道兩側懸掛的「中非共命運合作啟新程」的道旗，以及精心布置的巨型花壇。

China has pulled out all the stops for a gathering of leaders and top officials from more than 50 African nations this week in Beijing, welcoming them with pomp and pageantry.

本週，來自50多個非洲國家的領導人和高級官員齊聚北京，中國竭盡全力，以盛大隆重的禮儀歡迎他們的到來。

“After nearly 70 years of hard work, China-Africa relations are at the best period in history,” China’s leader, Xi Jinping, told the gathering on Thursday.

中國領導人習近平在週四的峰會上表示：「經過近70年辛勤耕耘，中非關係正處於歷史最好時期。」

Mr. Xi has cast his country as a defender of the developing world, one that can push the West to listen to the voices of poorer countries. He hosted a banquet for the leaders at the start of the event on Wednesday, after three straight days of back-to-back bilateral talks with nearly two dozen leaders of nations ranging from impoverished Chad to the continental economic powerhouse of Nigeria.

習近平將他的國家描繪成發展中國家的捍衛者，能夠推動西方傾聽貧窮國家的聲音。他在週三設宴歡迎出席峰會的各國領導人，而此前，他已經與20多個國家的領導人進行了連續三天的雙邊會談，其中既有貧窮的乍得，也有非洲經濟強國奈及利亞。

The three-day forum is meant to demonstrate Beijing’s global clout despite rising tensions with the West. Mr. Xi’s courtship of African countries is part of a great geopolitical competition with the United States that has intensified in recent years over Russia’s war in Ukraine and China’s aggressive posture toward Taiwan.

為期三天的論壇旨在展示北京的全球影響力，儘管它與西方的緊張關係日益加劇。習近平取悅非洲國家是中美地緣政治大戰的一部分，近年來，由於俄羅斯在烏克蘭的戰爭和中國對台灣的挑釁姿態，這種競爭愈演愈烈。

China is “trying to take advantage of the space left by the U.S. and Europe, which are increasingly disengaged with Africa,” said Eric Olander, the editor in chief of the China-Global South Project website. “China sees an opportunity to really step up its engagement, and not necessarily just with money.”

「中國正在嘗試利用美國和歐洲在非洲留下的空缺，」中國全球南方項目(China-Global South Project)網站的主編埃里克·奧蘭德說。「中國看到了真正加強接觸的機會，而不一定只是靠資金。」

And Beijing’s diplomatic push is more urgent this year as China, faced with slowing economic growth at home and accusations of dumping excess production abroad, seeks new buyers for its goods.

隨著中國面臨國內經濟增長放緩，以及向國外傾銷過剩產品的指控，北京方面在今年的外交努力更為緊迫，要為商品尋找新的買家。

“As China’s relations with the U.S. and Europe deteriorate, African markets, as well as other parts of the global south, will become even more important for Chinese goods,” said Yunnan Chen, a research fellow at the Overseas Development Institute in London who has studied cooperation between China and Africa. That is particularly true of new technologies like solar panels or electric vehicles, she added.

「隨著中國與美國和歐洲關係的惡化，非洲市場以及全球南方的其他部分將對中國商品變得更加重要，」研究中非合作的倫敦海外發展研究所研究員陳韻楠說。她還表示，對於太陽能電池板或電動汽車等新技術尤其如此。

Even so, some African leaders have indicated that they would prefer a more balanced relationship, one in which China bought more finished goods from the region, for instance. “We would like to narrow the trade deficit and address the structure of our trade,” South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, told Mr. Xi on Monday during talks held on the sidelines of the forum, according to an official transcript.

儘管如此，一些非洲領導人表示，他們希望建立一種更平衡的關係，例如中國從該地區購買更多的製成品。「我們希望縮小貿易逆差，解決我們的貿易結構問題，」據官方的會議記錄，南非總統拉馬福薩在週一與習近平舉行會談時表示。

The event is also an opportunity for China to defend its engagement in Africa. It has come under criticism for offering financing without environmental, financial or human rights conditions, leading to projects tainted by corruption, pollution or labor abuses. China, one of the world’s largest creditors, has also been reluctant to offer debt relief to most countries despite the crippling load that some are carrying.

此次論壇對中國來說也是一次為它與非洲打交道的方式進行辯護的機會。它因提供不附帶環境、金融或人權條件的融資而受到批評，這導致項目受到腐敗、污染或虐待勞工行為的影響。此外，作為世界上最大的債權國之一，中國也一直不願向大多數國家提供債務減免，儘管其中一些國家背負著沉重的負擔。

The meeting, held once every three years, has historically been a platform for China to pledge large, multibillion-dollar packages of financial and technical aid to Africa. President William Ruto of Kenya, for instance, hopes to get funding to finish a railway line from the Rift Valley to Malaba town on Kenya’s western border with Uganda. He is also looking for more investment to build roads and dams and set up an industrial park for pharmaceutical companies.

在過去，這場三年一次的會議一直是中國承諾向非洲提供數十億美元的巨額財政和技術援助的平台。比如，肯亞總統魯托希望獲得資金，修建一條從非洲大裂谷到肯亞西部與烏干達接壤的城鎮馬拉巴的鐵路。他還在尋求更多投資，以修建公路和大壩，並為製藥企業建立一個工業園。

China has adjusted its approach to new aid for the region. Instead of large railway and other infrastructure projects, Beijing is now emphasizing less costly commitments, like digital skills training — a useful contribution on a continent with a youthful population — and what it calls “small and beautiful” projects.

中國已經調整了為該地區提供新援助的方式。北京現在強調的不是大型鐵路和其他基礎設施項目，而是成本較低的承諾，例如數字技能培訓——這對一個擁有大量年輕人口大陸來說，是有益貢獻——以及所謂的「小而美」項目。

“We are in a period of recalibration, where African governments and Chinese banks are both more sensitive to risks,” said Deborah Brautigam, director of the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.

「我們正處於一個重新調整時期，非洲政府和中國的銀行都對風險更加敏感，」約翰霍普金斯大學高級國際研究院中非研究項目主任黛博拉·布勞蒂加姆表示。

Chinese lenders last year committed $4.61 billion to African countries and banks, the highest amount since 2016, according to data from Boston University. But that is still a fraction of the nearly $30 billion a year that they pledged in 2016, at the peak of Chinese financing in Africa.

根據波士頓大學的數據，中國的貸款機構去年向非洲國家和銀行承諾了46.1億美元的貸款，這是自2016年以來的最高金額。但這仍比2016年他們承諾的每年近300億美元少得多，當時中國對非洲的融資正處於高峰期。

The shift is driven in part by changes inside China, where the property sector is in crisis and local governments are overextended, and by higher interest rates post-pandemic, which raise the cost of debt for African countries. Angola and Zambia now owe billions of dollars to Chinese state-owned banks.

這種轉變在一定程度上是由中國內部的變化推動的，一方面它的房地產行業陷入危機，地方政府的財務狀況不佳；另一方面是疫情過後利率上升推高了非洲國家的債務成本。安哥拉和贊比亞現在欠中國國有銀行數十億美元。

“The world’s financial situation does not allow large-scale loans to developing countries,” said Tang Xiaoyang, an international relations scholar at Tsinghua University in Beijing, referring to the higher interest rates. “The cost is too high.”

「世界金融形勢不允許對發展中國家進行大規模貸款，」清華大學國際關係學者唐曉陽表示，他談到了更高的利率。「成本太高了。」

Critics have said that past meetings led to bloated loans that African countries could not pay back. (African countries also owe significant amounts to the World Bank and other international lenders.)

批評人士說，過去的會議導致非洲國家無法償還巨額貸款。（非洲國家還欠世界銀行和其他國際貸款機構大量貸款。)

And while Chinese lenders financed crucial infrastructure on the continent, they also backed coal-fired power plants and other projects that contributed to greenhouse gas emissions.

儘管中國貸款機構為非洲大陸的關鍵基礎設施提供資金，但它們也支持燃煤電廠和其他有溫室氣體排放的項目。

In the run-up to the summit, Chinese state media outlets have highlighted projects backed by Chinese lenders in African villages, like solar panel installations and soybean-planting techniques, as bringing direct benefits to communities.

在峰會召開前夕，中國的官方媒體在報導中強調中國的貸款機構在非洲農村所支持的項目，如太陽能電池板安裝和大豆種植技術，稱其為社區帶來了直接的好處。

The emphasis on smaller, greener initiatives may help assuage concerns in Africa about unprofitable megaprojects, said Jana De Kluiver, a research officer at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria. “It has this aspect of making sure that the China-Africa relationship, at least on a global scale, doesn’t look predatory,” she said.

比勒陀利亞安全研究所研究員賈娜·德克魯弗說，對規模較小、更環保的項目的重視，可能有助於緩解非洲對無利可圖的大型項目的擔憂。「這樣做的目的是要確保中非關係，至少在全球範圍內，不會看起來像是掠奪性的關係，」她說。

Even as the scale of Beijing’s cooperation with Africa has shifted or declined, “the fact that China has maintained these triannual summits over two decades is a huge political achievement,” said Ms. Chen, of the Overseas Development Institute.

儘管北京與非洲的合作規模發生了變化或下降，但「中國在過去20年裡一直保持著每三年舉行一次峰會，這是一項巨大的政治成就」，海外發展研究所研究員陳雲南說。

Such meetings are a way for Beijing to demonstrate China’s commitment to Africa. The United States, by contrast, held one such summit with African leaders in 2022, after eight years.

這些會議是北京展示中國對非洲承諾的一種方式。相比之下，美國僅在2022年舉行了一次與非洲領導人的峰會，而上一次峰會還要再往前推8年。

Ms. Brautigam said that the summit follows months of behind-the-scenes diplomacy between Chinese and African officials. “You can contrast this with how we do things in the U.S., where engagement is far more ad hoc,” she said.

布勞蒂加姆表示，這次峰會是中非官員數月幕後外交的結果。「這與我們在美國的做法形成了鮮明對比，我們之間的接觸更加零散，」她說。

China has officially asserted that it does not see Africa as a region where major powers compete for geopolitical gains, insisting it is interested in working with the region toward so-called “win-win cooperation.” At the same time, China’s aid, investments and diplomacy have helped secure African backing for China at international organizations like the United Nations.

中國正式表示，它不認為非洲是一個大國爭奪地緣政治利益的地區，堅稱它有興趣與該地區合作，實現所謂的合作共贏。與此同時，中國的援助、投資和外交幫助中國在聯合國等國際組織中贏得了非洲人的支持。

China has also won support on the African continent for the position it has taken on Israel’s war in Gaza. Beijing has brought rival Palestinian factions together for talks as it has sought a bigger diplomatic role in the Middle East. It has asserted its longstanding support of Palestinian statehood and criticized Israel’s bombardment of the region.

中國對以色列在加薩的戰爭所採取的立場也贏得了非洲國家的支持。中國政府希望在中東地區發揮更大的外交作用，已將巴勒斯坦敵對派系召集到一起進行談判。它堅持對巴勒斯坦建國的長期支持，並批評以色列對該地區的轟炸。

That position aligns China with countries like South Africa, which has called Israel’s policies toward Palestinians an “extreme form of apartheid.” A joint China-South Africa statement released on Monday cited the two countries’ shared interest in an “immediate cease-fire and end to all fighting” in Gaza.

中國的這一立場與南非等國一致。南非稱以色列對巴勒斯坦人的政策是「極端形式的種族隔離」。中國和南非週一發表的一份聯合聲明中指出，兩國都希望在加薩「立即停火和停止一切戰鬥」。

“China’s full embrace of the Palestinian cause has fully aligned it with almost the entire global south,” said Mr. Olander. For many Africans, he added, the war “closely resembles the colonial wars that ravaged their countries.”

奧蘭德表示，「中國對巴勒斯坦事業的全面支持，與幾乎整個全球南方是完全一致的。」他還說，對許多非洲人來說，這場戰爭「與摧毀他們國家的殖民戰爭非常相似」。