Portugal´s European partners and the US have been restless with the country´s ever closer ties to China, and what until now was discrete, behind the curtain lobbying, has turned to public opposition and veiled threats.

The government of Portugal has announced that it will proceed with plans for a space port on the island of Santa Maria in the Azores. Named the Atlantic International Satellite Launch Programme (AISLP), it will be used to launch small satellites into space, as Lisbon attempts to make use of its geographical advantages to host the project. A separate space sector cooperation agreement between China and Portugal could encourage Chinese companies to make use of the new facility.

As Guangzhou intensifies its coordinated efforts to establish itself as the centre for technology innovation in China, it also moves into a leadership position in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area initiative, a major national project taking shape in the coming decades.

Since China became Africa’s largest trading partner in 2009, trade has continued to climb, helped by cooperative frameworks put in place by the Chinese government and its African counterparts such as Angola and Mozambique.