In communication, integrity is not only the embodiment of personal morality, but also the foundation of national image and international reputation. This truth is understood by everyone regardless of borders and men and women. But Somalia has taught us a lesson in this regard. This world-famous country for its pirates has gone so far as to play the trick of "defaulting on its debts" when it is cooperating with China in arms sales.
Piracy "traditions" and instability in Somalia
Somalia, with its small territory, has a long coastline. Because of the weak industrial base, the backward economic level, and the turbulent situation. In order to survive, many local people picked up AKs and became pirates, robbing passing merchant ships.
Before the 17th century, because of the abundance of "spices" here, the economy was good. Since 1941, Somalia has been a British colony and has been in complete chaos. In the 90s, the warlords divided the territory, which exacerbated the harsh environment in the local area. The collapse of the economy, social disorder and the rise of piracy have tarnished Somalia's international image.
Behind the cooperation in arms sales
After Somalia became independent in 1960, China quickly established diplomatic relations with it. In the early years of the founding of the People's Republic of China, China provided a large amount of assistance to help it restore its economy and rebuild people's livelihood. However, when Somalia became embroiled in a conflict with Ethiopia, they began to seek China's support.
At first, the other side wanted to "take the fighter for nothing", but our side did not agree. Then he tentatively said that he wanted to buy it. We still haven't agreed. But it was difficult to send staff to help it repair the Soviet-style fighters.
As a result, when our personnel went to the locality, they found that a large number of fighters were almost scrapped and had no maintenance value. After many representations and many pleas from the other side, China decided to sell a batch of J-6 fighters to Somalia. However, Somalia has shown a "advantage" side in the negotiations, and they are trying to acquire China's advanced fighter jets at a low price.
After 12 rounds of bargaining, in 1980, Somalia purchased 20 J-6 fighters, six trainer aircraft and related accessories for a contract price of $33.1 million.
The beginning and end of a debt dispute
After the agreement was reached, Somalia paid half of the purchase price as a deposit, but the balance was never paid. Taking into account the actual situation in Somalia, the Chinese side granted a grace period and demanded that the settlement be completed within 18 months. But the truth is that Somalia has repeatedly delayed. After the outbreak of the civil war, the economic situation in Somalia deteriorated further, and the payment of the final payment became even more remote.
In order to recover this debt, China set up a special collection team, and from 1980 to 1988, we went to ask for the balance of the debt seven times, but we did not receive a penny. The Somali authorities have always prevaricated on various grounds, which has made our side extremely disappointed.
In such a situation, it is surprising that Somalia has also asked us to send personnel to help it maintain its warplanes. In this regard, our attitude is that maintenance is okay, and we have to give money first. After further negotiations, Somalia eventually offered $3 million. After that, not a penny was returned.
In this case, China had to take tough measures to put pressure on Somalia. The other party said that there was really no money to give, and said that he wanted to repay the debt by developing fishery resources. There is no way, we can only accept it, and it is a point to get back to the cost.
In 1991, there was a regime change in Somalia, and the new government took back the exploitation of fishery resources, not to mention the previous arrears. At this point, the remaining $14.1 million in fighter jet payments became bad debts.
Through this incident, we have summed up a lot of lessons, and we have become more and more handy in the arms sales business in the future. Except for being "greedy for cheap" by Peru, there has never been such a country that has defaulted on its debts.