Chinese foreign minister meets Ghanaian counterpart on relations

China

Chinese foreign minister meets Ghanaian counterpart on relations

2025-06-12 08:03 Last Updated At：11:07

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday met with Ghana's Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who is in China for the Ministerial Meeting of Coordinators on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province.

At the meeting, Wang, also member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, recalled that China and Ghana established a strategic partnership last year, opening a new chapter in bilateral relations. China stands ready to work with Ghana to deepen practical cooperation across various fields, advance the cause of China-Africa friendship, and uphold multilateralism in opposition to unilateralism.

Wang also highlighted the congratulatory letter sent by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the Changsha meeting in the day, in which Xi promised that China will implement zero-tariff treatment for 100 percent tariff lines for 53 African countries having established diplomatic relations with China, showing solidarity and friendship between China and Africa.

Ablakwa said as China has become Ghana's largest trading partner, Ghana looks forward to deepening cooperation with China in various fields, and will continue to adhere to the one-China principle and consolidate the strong partnership between the two countries.

U.S. Department of War reduces Brigade Combat Teams in Europe

The U.S. Department of War announced on Tuesday that it has reduced the total number of Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) assigned to Europe from four to three, returning to the levels seen in 2021.

This decision was the result of a comprehensive, multi-layered process focused on U.S. force posture in Europe, and it results in a temporary delay in the deployment of U.S. forces to Poland, the statement said.

Speaking at a White House press briefing the same day, Vice President J.D. Vance pushed back against media reports that the government had canceled a plan this month to send more than 4,000 troops to Poland, referring to the move as "just a standard delay in rotation" that is aimed at encouraging Europe to "take more ownership over its own territorial integrity."

In a May 2 interview, President Trump said the United States intends to "cut way down" its troop numbers in Germany, describing reductions that would go "a lot further" than the 5,000 personnel the Pentagon had announced a day earlier. Critics argued that the withdrawals are meant to punish NATO allies that did not join the U.S. military operations against Iran.