Sino-Zambian relations are exceptional to a remarkable degree, and do not seem to fall into the common pattern used to describe the Sino-African relationship as part of a so-called 'new scramble for Africa'. Zambia is a country where both positive and negative developments took place earlier than elsewhere on the African continent and, in this respect, Zambia has always been one step ahead of the rest of its peers. This study is divided into three parts. The first part presents a historical overview of diplomatic relations between China and Zambia. The second part deals with the domestic politics of Zambia and the usage by Zambian elites of the Chinese presence as an argument in internal political discourses. The third part focuses on emerging patterns of Chinese investment in Zambia, and tries to unpack some of the common myths pertaining to the scope and nature of China's engagement in Africa, based on the Zambian example.According to common understandings of ChinaÁAfrica relations, the African continent, with its significant supply of raw materials and relatively weak sociopolitical structures, is a place where neo-mercantilist China is tapping into the crude materials necessary to sustain its booming economy (Shinn 2009). This situation is often pictured as a new 'scramble for Africa', where both state-owned and private corporations are seeking to subordinate the continent and where options for African states are being delimited to either Beijing's or Washington's 'consensus'. This conventional description is normative, and it fairly structures the general perception of Sino-African relations. We, however, want to challenge this narrative by investigating the case of Zambia. We believe that Sino-Zambian relations are exceptional to a remarkable degree, and do not seem to fall into the pattern used to describe Sino-African relationships elsewhere.We embark on this quest with an assertion that Zambia is a country where both positive and negative developments have taken place earlier than elsewhere in the African continent. In other words, during the postcolonial era Zambia was always one step ahead of the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. As Alyster Fraser points out, 'independence, one-party rule, economic collapse, adjustment, and democratisation all came earlier in Zambia than in neighbouring countries' (Fraser 2009, 302). We believe that this view can be equally accurate in describing contemporary Sino-Zambian relations, for they offer a great deal of novelty, indeed, a uniqueness
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