Courting Africa

China opens the China-Africa forum today. China will host 48 of the 53 countries in Africa as part of its move to become the predominant foreign power in Africa. China wants Africa's raw materials, including oil, and also wants to add Africa to its commercial markets. Some in Africa see China as the the first foreign power that seems to treat African nations as equals. China will deal with any African country, even Sudan, as it does not factor the corruption of a state into its calculus.