DECODING DIPLOMATIC NARRATIVES: CHINA'S POLITICAL DISCOURSE WITH AFRICAN PORTUGUESE-SPEAKING COUNTRIES – A FOCUS ON ANGOLA

Authors

  • KAIYAO PENG https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8180-0867
  • FRANCISCO JOSÉ B. S. LEANDRO https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1443-5828
  • CÁTIA MIRIAM COSTA https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7666-5661

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26619/1647-7251.17.1.31

Keywords:

Angola, China, Political Discourse, Semiotics, International Relations, Portuguese-speaking Countries

Abstract

This study contributes to a broader research project examining China’s high-level political discourse (HLPD) with Portuguese-speaking countries (PSCs), with the present study focusing specifically on the Republic of Angola. Previous analyses within the project have addressed China’s engagements with Portugal and Brazil (Peng et al., 2025). Political discourse serves as a strategic tool through which leaders shape public perceptions of foundational principles, diplomatic priorities, and policy orientations - an approach that is explicitly articulated in Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. As China’s Head of State, Xi Jinping has consistently emphasized the construction of a narrative system aimed at enhancing the country’s international communication capacity and projecting a comprehensive national image. The Annual Report on the Development of Cooperation between China and Other Countries (2017–2019) documents a marked intensification of high-level exchanges between China and PSCs. Against this setting, the present study investigates China’s HLPD in its diplomatic engagements with Angola, representing the African PSCs within the broader project framework. The overall research design categorizes PSCs into three regional groupings: Ibero-American, Asian, and African. Angola is examined as a case study within the African grouping. This study draws on official Chinese sources, primarily the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and analyses English-language translations of high-level statements and communications. A total of 23 high-level political communication events (HLPCEs) between China and Angola - featuring President Xi Jinping, former Premier Li Keqiang, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi -were examined. These events, spanning from March 2013 to October 2022, were subjected to a discourse-semiotic analysis to decode their textual content and identify recurring narrative elements. The findings reveal a consistent emphasis on mutual and sustainable cooperation, particularly in the domains of trade and technology, alongside efforts to foster interpersonal ties and joint development. The analysis also highlights a discernible trend toward the deepening of bilateral relations between China and Angola. The study is structured as follows: (1) Introduction; (2) Literature Review; (3) Critical Discourse Analysis; (4) Methodology; (5) Discussion and Findings; and (6) Conclusion.

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Author Biographies

KAIYAO PENG, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8180-0867

Doctoral candidate in International Relations at the City University of Macau (China). Her research focuses on China’s high-level political discourse and its engagement with Portuguese-speaking countries, examining diplomatic narrative construction and interregional cooperation in the Lusophone world. She is co-author of A Semiotic Decoding of Political Discourse Between China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries (JANUS.NET, 2025), which develops a discourse-semiotic framework for analysing China–Lusophone political communication. She has contributed to multiple Macau Foundation–funded projects, including “Investing in Cultural Diversity: Portuguese-Speaking Countries” (2023), “Research on the History of Relations between Macau and Portuguese-Speaking Countries” (2024), and “Research on the Cross-Cultural Communication Competence of Portuguese-Language Major Students in Macau” (2024–2025), strengthening research on Macau’s institutional role in China–Lusophone cooperation.

FRANCISCO JOSÉ B. S. LEANDRO, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1443-5828

He received his Ph.D. in Political Science and International Relations from the Catholic University of Portugal in 2010. From 2014 to 2018, he served as the Program Coordinator at the Institute of Social and Legal Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Saint Joseph in Macau, China. From 2018 to 2023, he was the Associate Dean of the Institute for Research on Portuguese-Speaking Countries at the City University of Macau, China. Currently, he is an Associate Professor with Habilitation in International Relations at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau (China), and Deputy Director of the Institute for Global and Public Affairs. His recent publications include: Is China a Global Power? (2025), Palgrave Macmillan and The Palgrave Handbook on Geopolitics of Brazil and South Atlantic (2025), Palgrave Macmillan. Francisco Leandro is a member of Centre for International Studies - ISCTE - University Institute of Lisbon and OBSERVARE (Observatory of Foreign Relations), established in 1996 as a centre for studies on International Relations at the Autonomous University of Lisbon, Portugal.

CÁTIA MIRIAM COSTA, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7666-5661

Assistant Researcher and Professor, and the Coordinator of the Group Global Politics and Security at the Centre for International Studies - ISCTE - University Institute of Lisbon (Portugal). She also holds a position of visiting Researcher and Professor at the University of Granada and University of Macau and is member of the Group of Studies of Iranian People – University Autonoma de Madrid. She is guest lecturer at the Institute of National Defence and the Director of the Chair of Interregionalism and Global Governance at the European Institute of International Studies (Stockholm/Salamanca). She has coordinated and participated as a researcher in several international research projects financed by the European Commission, the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology and the CYTED - Ibero-American Program of Science and Technology for Development. She has published several scientific articles and book chapters in international journals and printing houses. She has also published regularly in the periodical press and has commented on Portuguese news channels.

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Published

2026-05-04

Issue

Vol. 17 No. 1 (2026)

Section

ARTICLES