HARARE – Last year’s decision by China and Russia to block United Nations (UN) sanctions against Zimbabwe paved way for power-sharing negotiations to continue leading to formation of a unity government in the African country, Beijing’s top diplomat in Harare said on Tuesday.

The drive to rally the UN community against President Robert Mugabe and his old government flopped after Beijing and Moscow, allies of the Zimbabwean leader, vetoed a United States-sponsored draft resolution for the Security Council to impose an arms embargo on Zimbabwe as well as visa and financial sanctions on top government officials.   

Chinese ambassador to Zimbabwe Yuan Nansheng said had the US proposals passed power-sharing negotiations that were taking place in neighbouring South Africa could have collapsed because the sanctions resolution would have banned UN member countries from allowing representatives of Mugabe’s ZANU PF party into their territory.

“The veto by China and Russia has provided a good foundation for the formation of the inclusive government,” said Nansheng in his last briefing to reporters before leaving Zimbabwe to take up a new diplomatic post in Suriname.

Yuan said: “SADC and the African Union (did) not wish to see the resolution through. China and Russia wanted to create a good environment for Zimbabwe.

He added, “China and Russia vetoed the US proposals in line with the SADC and African Union position. I do not think the inclusive government would have been established if Russia and China had not vetoed the US resolution.”

While negotiations between ZANU PF and the then two MDC opposition formations would have most likely continued at another venue, sanctions would have certainly hardened Mugabe and his lieutenants and make them less inclined to agree to have their grip on power diluted through coalition government with their former foes.

There was also likelihood that pro-Mugabe military commanders could have ordered a crackdown against the MDC, which they would have blamed for the sanctions because of its perceived close ties with Western governments.

Meanwhile Yuan praised Mugabe’s “Look East” foreign policy for helping strengthen relations between China and Zimbabwe but he urged the Harare authorities to also pursue relations with other countries.

“The look East Policy ensured the strengthening on friendship between the two countries. It does not mean when you adopt a Look East Policy you exclude relationships with others. Zimbabwe should also promote relations with other countries,” he said.

Zimbabwe has since 2000 promoted an aggressive “Look East” policy premised on the need to find new trading partners and markets after traditional investors from Western nations turned against Harare in protest over Mugabe’s human rights abuses, repression against political opponents and violent land-grab programme. – ZimOnline