On August 1, 2019, Director-General of the Department of African Affairs of the Foreign Ministry Dai Bing traveled to Washington D.C. for the first consultation on the African affairs at departmental level between China and the United States (US). During his stay in Washington D.C., Dai Bing met respectively with Assistant Secretary of State Tibor Nagy and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew T. Harrington. Dai Bing elaborated China's policy towards Africa. Both sides had in-depth exchanges of views on cooperation with Africa, hotspot issues in Africa and other topics.

Dai Bing expressed that China and the US, as two major countries in the world and permanent members of the United Nations (UN) Security Council, are both important cooperation partners of Africa. Each country has its own characteristics and advantages in its cooperation with Africa. The Chinese side is willing to work with the US side to strengthen communication, enhance trust, and dispel misgivings, so as to jointly make greater contributions to the development and rejuvenation of Africa and add positive energy to the development of China-US relations. It is hoped that the US side can view China-Africa cooperation in an objective and unbiased manner and send a positive and constructive message to the world.

Tibor Nagy and Matthew T. Harrington said that China has achieved positive outcomes in its economic and social construction in Africa. Both the US and China are committed to promoting peace and development in Africa, and the two countries share the same overall goal in their cooperation with Africa. The US side stands ready to, together with the Chinese side, maintain consultation, step up dialogue, explore cooperation approach, and jointly safeguard stability in Africa and improve business environment in Africa, in a bid to create favorable conditions for enterprises of both countries to strengthen investment and trade with Africa.