This photo released by the Confucius Institute at Durban University of Technology on Aug. 18, 2023 shows faculty and students of the institute displaying a calligraphic work which reads "China-South Africa friendship" in Chinese. (Confucius Institute at Durban University of Technology/Handout via Xinhua)



To South Africans, the visit of President Xi is very important in enhancing and strengthening bilateral relations, including trade relations between the two countries, said African National Congress Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula.



JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Late August in South Africa is famed for its radiant afternoons when the golden African sun bathes the landscape in its warm embrace.

It serves as a perfect backdrop for the blossoming China-South Africa relationship, which, as noted by Chinese President Xi Jinping, "has entered a 'golden era,' enjoying broad prospects and a promising future."

"It is one of the most vibrant bilateral relations in the developing world," Xi said in a signed article titled "Sailing the Giant Ship of China-South Africa Friendship and Cooperation Toward Greater Success," published Monday in South African media as he set off to attend the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg and pay a state visit to South Africa.

It was not the first time Xi called China-South Africa friendship and cooperation a "giant ship." In 2015, before his state visit to the country, Xi said in a signed article that the bilateral cooperation and friendship "has grown from a small boat to a gigantic vessel."

As the world is facing numerous uncertainties and living through accelerating changes unseen in a century, "that metaphor still holds true," said Sifiso Mahlangu, editor-in-chief of South Africa's leading newspaper, The Star, which published Xi's signed articles this time and in 2015.

"A giant ship is a great metaphor" because it rides the wind and waves and "is against the tide," said Mahlangu. "It is a metaphor that stands and lives up to the pledge of BRICS cooperation."

This photo taken on March 31, 2023 shows an exterior view of the China-aided Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. (Photo by Michael Tewelde/Xinhua)

On Monday, the country was abuzz with anticipation as it prepared to welcome Xi.

"To us South Africans, the visit of President Xi is very important in enhancing and strengthening bilateral relations ... (including) trade relations between the two countries," said African National Congress (ANC) Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula.

Data released by China showed that in the first half of the year, bilateral trade reached 28.25 billion U.S. dollars, up 11.7 percent year-on-year.

China has maintained its position as South Africa's largest trading partner for 14 consecutive years, while South Africa has been China's largest trading partner in Africa for 13 consecutive years.

Calling the bilateral ties "stronger and stronger," Mbalula told Xinhua that South Africa-China relations are formed by "ties of anti-imperialism, multipolarity that we both believe in and strong ties of economic relationship." ■