For two Chinese automakers, the BRICS summit is a success before the event has even really started. In front of the luxury hotels in the Johannesburg suburb of Sandton, where brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW are usually located, limousines from the Chinese manufacturers Chery and Haval are lined up this week. The summit logo with the rising sun is emblazoned on their license plates. The Chinese companies had ceremoniously handed over the cars to the South African Foreign Ministry as official companions at the summit.
Claudia Bröll
Political correspondent for Africa based in Cape Town.
Follow
I follow
Jochen Stahnke
Political correspondent for China, Taiwan and North Korea based in Beijing.
Follow
I follow
The fleet of vehicles is an indication of the central role China is playing at the summit, which began on Tuesday. In addition to the BRICS representatives, numerous other heads of state and government as well as representatives of international institutions are taking part, including the Secretary General of the United Nations. The night before, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and several ministers had met Chinese leader Xi Jinping with entourage at Johannesburg’s O.R. received tambo. The military flanked the red carpet while a traditional dance group set the mood. Twelve hours later, Xi met with Ramaphosa at government headquarters in Pretoria for bilateral talks as part of a state visit. Xi is the only leader of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) to combine the summit with his own state visit.