Is Gabon the Location of China's Second African Military Base

 The Foreign Military Studies Office of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command posted on 15 February 2025 a commentary titled "China Sets Sight on Gabon for Second African Military Base" by Jacob Zenn, adjunct professor at Georgetown University.  

The author argued that Beijing is targeting Gabon to host the second Chinese military base on the African continent following establishment of its first in Djibouti in 2017.  Evidence to support this conclusion seems to be based primarily on the September 2024 visit to Gabon by the PLA Navy hospital ship, Peace Ark.  

Comment:  While China probably does wish to establish a naval base on Africa's Atlantic coast at some point, the Peace Ark on this same trip also made calls at ports in Luanda, Angola; Brazzaville, Republic of Congo; Douala, Cameroon; Cotonou, Benin; and Nouakchott, Mauritania.  These ports and others are candidates for a future Chinese naval facility.  

PLA Navy Hospital Ship Completes Visit to Africa

 The Diplomat published on 11 February 2025 a commentary titled "China's Navy Steps Up Its Peace Ark Diplomacy" by Lea Thome.

The PLA Navy's hospital ship, Peace Ark, completed in December 2024 its six-month circumnavigation of Africa where it made stops of seven days each in the following ports: Victoria, Seychelles; Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Antsiranana, Madagascar; Maputo, Mozambique; Cape Town, South Africa; Luanda, Angola; Brazzaville, Republic of Congo; Owendo, Gabon; Douala, Cameroon; Cotonou, Benin; Nouakchott, Mauritania; and Djibouti.  

PLA Navy Steps Up Port Calls in South Africa

 Defence Web published on 30 September 2024 an article titled "Indian, Brazilian, and Chinese Warships Heading to South Africa" by Guy Martin.

The PLA Navy is sending its frigate CNS Xuchang to participate in the annual Navy Festival in Simons Town, South Africa, from 4-6 October.  The PLA Navy hospital ship, Peace Ark, made a weeklong visit to Cape Town in August.

The Navy Festival will be followed from 7-16 October by Exercise IBSAMAR, which involves naval vessels from South Africa, India, and Brazil off the Western Cape.  Exercise IBSAMAR debuted in 2008 as an alliance of three countries with democratic values, commercial interests, and maritime cooperation.  India is sending the stealth frigate INS Talwar to Exercise IBSAMAR.

Comment:  The juxtaposition of PLA and Indian naval vessels in South Africa one after the other underscores the naval competition between India and China in the Indian Ocean.  

China's PLA, the Navy, and Far Seas

The National Defense University in Washington published in 2015 a book titled The People's Liberation Army and Contingency Planning in China edited by Andrew Scobell, Arthur S. Ding, Phillip C. Saunders, and Scott W. Harold.

Chapter 13 is titled "The PLA and Far Seas Contingencies: Chinese Capabilities for Noncombatant Evacuation Operations" by Michael S. Chase, Rand Corporation.  It covers the 2011 evacuation of Chinese nationals from Libya.

Chapter 14 is titled "PLA  Navy Planning for Out of Area Deployments" by Kristen Gunness and Samuel K. Berkowitz, both at the Rand Corporation.  It discusses far seas operations and the anti-piracy effort in the Gulf of Aden.