What are the possible reasons why China People's Liberation Army chose Djibouti as its first overseas base?

The reason why China People's Liberation Army chose Djibouti as its first overseas base;

First, guard the strategic route of the Red Sea entering the Indian Ocean: The Chinese People's Liberation Army Support Base in Djibouti guards the strategic route of the Red Sea entering the Indian Ocean-the Mande Strait, which is known as the "throat of the sea". Mande Strait is the lifeline of international oil transportation. All ships going north to Europe through the Suez Canal or going south to the Indian Ocean from the Red Sea need to pass through the Mande Strait and call at Djibouti Port. Djibouti is therefore called "the sentry on the oil channel". Whoever controls this area will control the important maritime strategic passage connecting Europe, Asia and Africa.

2. Combating piracy, supplementing PLA troops to combat piracy in the Gulf of Aden: In recent years, with the increasingly rampant piracy in Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, Djibouti's strategic position has become increasingly prominent. Since 2008, under the authorization of the United Nations, more than 20 countries and international organizations, including China, have sent warships to the Gulf of Aden to fight pirates and escort merchant ships. Djibouti, located at the western end of the Gulf of Aden, has become the first choice for navies of various countries with the advantages of many natural ports.

In addition, compared with neighboring countries, Djibouti has long pursued a neutral, non-aligned and good-neighborly foreign policy in international affairs, and its domestic political situation has always remained relatively stable, which is also an important reason why Djibouti can attract more and more countries to establish military bases on its territory.

Third, the China Navy is familiar with Djibouti Port.

In recent years, piracy crimes have been rampant in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali waters. At the beginning of the new century, China set up an overseas escort formation to protect the safety of sea routes in the open sea. Djibouti is one of the few reliable supply ports, and almost all the main ships of China Navy are docked here. If each fleet is replenished twice, then in such a place with a population of less than one million, nearly 40,000 sailors from China have arrived here not far from Wan Li.

4. Djiboutian people are very friendly to China navy.

As early as 20 10, the China navy and the Square Boat Hospital went overseas for the first time to carry out the "Harmonious Mission -20 10" mission, and Djibouti became the first stop. During the 7-day medical service, 27 19 local patients were treated, and 2,588 auxiliary examinations were made, which won the praise of local people.

Djibouti also played an important role as a "transit point" for China to evacuate overseas Chinese.

On April 20 15, China navy Linyi ship carried 225 expatriates from 10 countries, including Pakistan, and arrived in Djibouti safely from the Gulf of Aden. This is the first time that China has used armed warships to evacuate overseas Chinese, and the speed of China's evacuation has won praise at home and abroad. Imagine that if China has its own supply engineering facilities in Djibouti, it can not only deal with emergencies in the Gulf of Aden and North Africa more quickly, but also deal with emergencies in other surrounding areas.

Intransitive verbs strengthen the communication and cooperation between China and African countries: In recent years, the communication between China and Africa has been continuously strengthened. With the increasing number of cruises of China's naval forces, this base can bring more reliable logistics supplies, more efficient evacuation of overseas Chinese and stronger anti-piracy capabilities to China's navigation, thus maintaining the safety of international strategic passages.

Seven, there is another important reason for China to build a port in Djibouti, which is to defend China's economic interests! When the country's economic interests expand, its military strength will be protected. According to official statistics, the number of China people in Africa has now exceeded 1 10,000, and the investment involved in the project is huge. At present, China enterprises have contracted projects in amounting to billions of dollars, involving large-scale infrastructure projects such as seaports, airports and railways, which are considered by the President of Djibouti as the largest investors.