GEOPOLITICAL AND GEOECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS OF PRC’S CONTROL OVER AFRICAN PORTS

Abstract

Abstract. The article explores the geopolitical and geoeconomic consequences of the PRC’s control over Africa’s port infrastructure. The relevance of the study derives from the transformation of maritime logistics into a foundation for Beijing’s economic resilience and a tool for shifting the global balance of power. The author identifies the specifics of the Chinese approach to Africa, which is based on control over maritime logistics hubs. This approach allows for the monopolization and guaranteed stability of supply chains for critical materials, grants priority access to natural resource extraction, enables influence over the continent’s foreign trade, and facilitates the adaptation of commercial ports for the needs of the PLA Navy through "dual-use" infrastructure.

Methodologically, the study is based on a systems approach utilizing qualitative methods, including case studies, content analysis, discourse analysis, and comparative analysis. The findings demonstrate that the PRC views African ports as a tool to ensure priority access to strategic resources and to build closed logistics cycles protected from Western sanction pressure and potential blockades. It is proven that the continent’s commercial ports are perceived by the PRC as potential "strategic strongpoints," which are becoming key elements in forming China’s asymmetric maritime power and reshaping the security architecture in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. It is established that the PRC is capable of altering the global balance of power by projecting military force below the threshold of formal securitization through its control over African ports.

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Received: 16.01.26 / Revised: 29.01.26 / Accepted: 18.03.26 / Published:30.03.26