From rifles to radar: China upgrades its African arms trade as Russia and the West retreat

For decades, China has supplied African militaries with small arms and land-based equipment such as armoured vehicles, trucks and artillery.

Now, it is selling them more specialised weapons, including armed drones and electronic warfare systems. Analysts noted that China’s African arms sales were shifting qualitatively to air-defence systems, armed drones and electronic warfare gear once dominated by Russia and the…