Prof Paul Tembe’s book on President Xi Jinping and Chinese-South African relations in the new era could not have seen the light at a more opportune time.

Seldom before in the history of international relations, during a time in which the world seems to constantly teeter on the edge of war, has a president of the People’s Republic of China been so positively portrayed on the global stage so often.

For South Africans, the country’s close relationship with China is of specific importance.

During the well-attended and prestigious book launch at Nutting House Lodge outside Mbombela on Friday November 5, Tembe, a lecturer in Mandarin at Unisa’s Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, told guests his vision for the book is to highlight the role played by Jinping in fostering Chinese-South Africa relations.

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“My book provides clarity on the role of China’s and SA’s co-operation in the region and the African continent, highlighting Jinping’s proposals and initiatives and his thoughts on enhancing the two countries’ policies. It will also help readers to understand the Chinese-African policy in the context of those proposals and his countless deliberations during his visit to SA.”

He added that this book is a uniquely timed addition to the study of SA’s relationship with China, which surpassed a quarter of a century this year. “The two countries are counselled to deliberate and to dispense with what has become redundant, and to redouble their efforts to sustain and improve upon mutual benefits. The relationship between the two countries is integral to establishing a community with a shared concern for mankind.”

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Tembe said the book aims to play devil’s advocate in seeking to highlight loopholes and bottlenecks that might strain or jeopardise the gains of this bilateral co-operation. The book identifies five bottlenecks in Chinese-South Africa relations; the lack of public awareness, conflict between policy and law, short-term versus long-term planning and implementation of policy, and “reading from the old book while eating from the new one”.

He also stressed warnings in the book that unless these factors are resolved, SA stands to lose much in terms of international recognition brought about by its relations with China. “Both parties need to resolve the above-mentioned bottlenecks if we are to see advances and benefits of mutual respect and creating a win-win situation and a partnership of equals between China and SA, including the entire African continent,” he said. The professor thanked those who co-operated during his research. The book, XI Jingping and thriving Chinese-South African Relations in the New Era, is available in all bookshops across SA.