Foreign relations of Cameroon

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Cameroon's noncontentious, low-profile approach to foreign relations puts it squarely in the middle of other African and developing country states on major issues. It supports the principles of non-interference in the affairs of developing countries and increased assistance to underdeveloped countries. Cameroon is an active participant in the United Nations, where its voting record demonstrates its commitment to causes that include international peacekeeping, the rule of law, environmental protection, and Third World economic development. In the UN and other human rights fora, Cameroon's non-confrontational approach has generally led it to avoid criticizing other countries.

Cameroon enjoys good relations with France, the United States and other developed countries. Cameroon enjoys generally good relations with its African neighbors. It supports UN peacekeeping activities in Central Africa.

International disputes

Delimitation of international boundaries in the vicinity of Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, is complete and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria; dispute with Nigeria over land and maritime boundaries around the Bakasi Peninsula and Lake Chad is currently before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), as is a dispute with Equatorial Guinea over the exclusive maritime economic zone. As of 10 October 2012, it has been resolved that Cameroon own Bakassi.

Cameroon also faces a complaint filed with the African Commission on Human Rights by the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC) and the Southern Cameroons Peoples Organization (SCAPO) against the Government of the Republic of Cameroon, in which the complainants allege that the Republic of Cameroon is illegally occupying the territory of Southern Cameroons. The SCNC and SCAPO ultimately seek the independence of the territory of Southern Cameroons.[1] As of 2008, both parties have submitted briefs and responded to the Human Rights Commissions' inquiries. A ruling by the African Commission on Human Rights is awaited.

Diplomatic relations

List of countries which Cameroon maintains diplomatic relations with:

More information #, Country ...
# Country Date
1 France 1 January 1960[2]
2 Germany 1 January 1960[3]
3 Japan 1 January 1960[4]
4 United States 1 January 1960[5]
5 United Kingdom 1 February 1960[6]
6 Lebanon 8 June 1960[7]
7 Israel 15 September 1960[8]
8 Liberia 23 November 1960[9]
9 Nigeria November 1960[10]
10 Burkina Faso 1960[11]
11 Central African Republic 1960[11]
12 Denmark 1960[12]
13 Mauritania 1960[11]
14 Senegal 1960[13]
15 Egypt 7 January 1961[14]
16 Tunisia 18 February 1961[15]
17 South Korea 10 August 1961[16]
18  Switzerland 9 November 1961[17]
19 Spain 10 November 1961[18]
20 Netherlands 2 December 1961[19]
21 Canada 7 December 1961[20]
22 Philippines 11 December 1961[21]
23 Italy 28 February 1962[22]
24 Belgium 14 March 1962[23]
25 Luxembourg 7 June 1962[24]
26 Turkey 11 October 1962[25][26]
27 Mali 13 October 1962[27][28]
28 Ivory Coast 26 November 1962[29]
29 Republic of the Congo 29 November 1962[30]
30 Chad 1962[31]
31 Pakistan 1962[32]
32 Gabon 1 February 1963[33]
33 India 4 April 1963[34]
34 Sudan 12 July 1963[35]
35 Ethiopia 9 August 1963[36]
36 Ghana 20 August 1963[37]
37 Guinea 13 September 1963[38]
38 Algeria 1 January 1964[39]
39 Finland 17 January 1964[40]
40 Russia 18 February 1964[41]
41 Chile 11 August 1964[42]
42 Syria 29 November 1964[43]
43 Norway 15 June 1965[44]
44 Democratic Republic of Congo 21 June 1965[45]
45 Thailand 20 July 1965[46]
46 Morocco 13 August 1965[47]
47 Sweden 24 September 1965[48][49]
48 Serbia 12 December 1965[50]
49 Gambia 1965[11]
— Holy See 27 August 1966[51]
50 Saudi Arabia 6 October 1966[52]
51 Austria 29 March 1968[53]
52 Equatorial Guinea 27 October 1968[54]
53 Lesotho 29 October 1968[55]
54 Libya 3 August 1969[56]
55 Romania 14 May 1970[57]
56 China 26 March 1971[58]
57 North Korea 3 March 1972[59]
58 Poland 14 March 1972[60]
59 Zambia 21 April 1972[61]
60 Vietnam 30 August 1972[62]
61 Tanzania August 1972[63]
62 Uganda August 1972[63]
63 Kenya 5 September 1972[64]
64 Cambodia 13 October 1972[65]
65 Benin 5 March 1973[66]
66 Greece 28 April 1973[67]
67 Albania 20 August 1973[68]
68 Niger 13 February 1974[69]
69 Rwanda 11 March 1974[70]
70 Costa Rica 3 April 1974[71][72]
71 Cuba 31 August 1974[73]
72 Malawi 10 September 1974[74]
73 Cyprus 1974[75]
74 Argentina 2 January 1975[76]
75 United Arab Emirates 24 February 1975[77]
76 Qatar 26 February 1975[77]
77 Bahrain 27 February 1975[77]
78 Iran 10 March 1975[78]
79 São Tomé and Príncipe 14 July 1975[79]
80 Kuwait 22 September 1975[80]
81 Mozambique 9 December 1975[81]
82 Mexico 23 December 1975[82]
83 Iraq 1975[32]
84 Sierra Leone 30 September 1976[83]
85 Trinidad and Tobago 19 December 1976[84]
86 Brazil 1976[85]
87 Portugal 12 February 1977[86]
88 Djibouti 22 January 1978[87]
89 Angola 21 August 1979[88]
90 Burundi 1 August 1980[89]
91 Haiti 11 January 1981[90]
92 Vanuatu 1 November 1981[91]
93 Bulgaria 24 February 1984[92]
94 Panama 14 August 1984[93]
95 Hungary 21 January 1987[94]
96 Colombia 8 March 1989[86]
97 Namibia 10 July 1990[95]
98 Czech Republic 27 September 1990[96]
99 Zimbabwe 28 February 1991[97][98]
100 Malaysia 1 March 1991[99]
101 Venezuela 25 June 1991[86]
102 Jamaica 26 September 1991[86]
103 Singapore 30 September 1991[100]
104 Bahamas 4 October 1991[86]
105 Indonesia 16 June 1992[101]
106 Guatemala 14 April 1993[86]
107 Ukraine 21 October 1993[102]
108 Slovakia 15 November 1993[103]
109 Paraguay 3 December 1993[86]
110 South Africa 29 April 1994[86]
111 Azerbaijan 24 September 1995[86]
112 Slovenia 29 September 1998[104]
113 Oman 30 November 1998[77]
114 North Macedonia 6 April 2001[86]
115 Australia 2 March 2002[105]
116 Croatia 18 October 2002[86]
117 Timor-Leste 20 May 2003[86]
118 Malta 27 January 2006[86]
119 Tajikistan 3 March 2006[106]
120 Estonia 27 July 2006[107]
121 Belarus 14 November 2006[108]
122 Ireland 23 April 2007[86]
123 Armenia 28 May 2007[109]
124 Iceland 19 September 2007[86]
125 Kazakhstan 14 May 2009[110]
126 Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 September 2009[111]
127 Peru 13 July 2010[112]
128 Andorra 21 October 2010[113]
129 Lithuania 16 September 2013[86]
130 Georgia 26 September 2013[86]
131 Mongolia 2 April 2015[86]
132 Latvia 16 April 2015[86]
133 Uruguay 18 December 2017[86]
134 Moldova 27 March 2019[86]
135 Kyrgyzstan 27 September 2019[86]
136 Nicaragua 1 November 2019[86]
137 Saint Kitts and Nevis 9 June 2021[114]
138 Bangladesh 6 December 2022[115]
139   Nepal 22 June 2023[86]
140 Seychelles 11 February 2026[116]
141 Cape Verde Unknown
142 Guinea-Bissau Unknown
143 Madagascar Unknown
144 New Zealand Unknown
145 Togo Unknown
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Bilateral relations

More information Country, Formal Relations Began ...
Country Formal Relations Began Notes
Australia2 March 2002Both countries established diplomatic relations on 2 March 2002[105]
  • Both countries are full members of The Commonwealth.
  • Cameroon is accredited to Australia through its embassy in Tokyo, Japan.[117]
  • Australia is represented in Cameroon through its High Commission in Abuja, Nigeria.
Canada7 December 1961

Cameroon and Canada have established diplomatic ties on 7 December 1961[118] with three agreements and four protocoles signed in 1965. Both countries share the use of English and French as the two official languages as well as memberships in the Francophonie and The Commonwealth.

  • Cameroon has a high commission in Ottawa.[119]
  • Canada has a high commission in Yaoundé.[120]
Chile 11 August 1964 Both countries established diplomatic relations on 11 August 1964[121]
China26 March 1971Both countries established diplomatic relations on 26 March 1971[122]
See also: Cameroon–China relations

The People's Republic of China has a number of health and infrastructure projects underway in Cameroon. In January 2007, China signed a series of economic agreements with Cameroon, giving more than $54 million in loans.,[123] China constructed the multipurpose sports complex in Yaounde and renovated the famous Amadou Ahidjo stadium.

Cote d'Ivoire3 September 1962Both countries established diplomatic relations on 3 September 1962[29]
France1 January 1960

Both countries established diplomatic relations on 1 January 1960[125]

Cameroon has particularly close ties with France, with whom it has numerous military, economic, and cultural agreements, the construction of the Bonaberi bridge in Douala is pioneered by the French and they are to exploit uranium discovered in the North by 2018.

Israel15 September 1960Both countries established diplomatic relations on 15 September 1960,[8] but relations was broken on 13 October 1973[126] and re-established diplomatic relations on 26 August 1986[127]
See also: Cameroon–Israel relations

Cameroon's Rapid Reaction Force is trained and armed by Israel, and Cameroon supports Israel in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) draft resolution votes. Many citizens of Cameroon receive training and education in agriculture in Israel. The Israeli ambassador described Cameroon as Israel's best friend in Africa. Additionally, Cameroon strongly opposes the existence of and antagonizes Palestine and is one of only two nations in Africa not to have yet recognized it[128]

Mexico22 December 1975Both countries established diplomatic relations on 22 December 1975[129]
  • Cameroon is accredited to Mexico from its embassy in Washington, D.C., United States[130] with a consulate in Mexico City.
  • Mexico is accredited to Cameroon from its embassy in Abuja, Nigeria[131] with a consulate in Yaoundé.
NigeriaNovember 1960Both countries established diplomatic relations in November 1960[132]
See also: Cameroon–Nigeria relations

Cameroon is engaged in a sporadic armed conflict with Nigeria in the oil-rich Bakassi Peninsula. The dispute was resolved through the 2006 Greentree Agreement which led to the full withdrawal of Nigerian troops from the region and its administrative transfer back to Cameroon in August 2013.[133] The two countries agree on maritime delimitation.Economic relations between both states are however timid, the uprise of the Boko Haram terrorists group called for military co-operation between Cameroon and Nigeria.

Russia20 February 1964Both countries established diplomatic relations on 20 February 1964[134]
See also: Cameroon–Russia relations
  • Cameroon has an embassy in Moscow.
  • Russia has an embassy in Yaoundé.
South Korea10 August 1961

Both countries established diplomatic relations on 10 August 1961.[135] In 2012 Bilateral Trade was US$64 million[136]

Spain10 November 1961Both countries established diplomatic relations on 10 November 1961[137]
See also: Cameroon–Spain relations
Turkey9 August 1963Both countries established diplomatic relations on 9 August 1963[138]
  • Cameroon has an embassy in Ankara
  • Turkey has an embassy in Yaoundé
  • Trade volume between the two countries was US$205 million in 2019 (Cameroon's exports/imports: 54/151 million USD).[139]
  • There are direct flights from Istanbul to Yaoundé.
United Kingdom1 February 1960See Foreign relations of the United Kingdom

Cameroon established diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom on 1 February 1960.[6]

The UK governed western Cameroon from 1916 to 1961, when it joined the Federal Republic of Cameroon.

Both countries share common membership of the Commonwealth, and the World Trade Organization. Bilaterally the two countries have an Economic Partnership Agreement.[141]

United States1 January 1960Both countries established diplomatic relations on 1 January 1960[142]
See also: Cameroon–United States relations
Vietnam30 August 1972

Both countries established diplomatic relations on 30 August 1972.[145] Vietnam is represented in Cameroon through a non-resident embassy in Abuja, Nigeria and an honorary consulate in Douala.[146][147] In 2014 Nexttel, Joint operative company of Viettel becomes the First 3G operator in Cameroon.[148]

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Multilateral relations

In addition to the United Nations, Cameroon is very active in other multilateral organisations or global institutions such as the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, The Commonwealth, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Group of 77, the Non-Aligned Movement, the African Union and the Economic Community of Central African States.

See also

References

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