China’s deputy ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zhao Baogang, has shed light on why he welcomed Vice President Constantino Chiwenga on Saturday morning on his return from China.
Using microblogging site Twitter, Zhao said that it is a basic protocol for him as a diplomat that he welcomed Chiwenga. He wrote:
[Since] he [Chiwenga] is coming from China, I receive him [and] that’s a basic protocol for a diplomat.
Zhao went to castigate a local publication (Bulawayo24) for “creating rumours about China-Zimbabwe relations many times”. Zhao attached a screenshot of an article by the publication which reads:
No ZANU PF or government official was present to welcome him. There have been several reports that Chiwenga is working with China to plot a coup against President Emmerson Mnangagwa.