Reports that China is financing investments to the tune of $7bn in military-ruled Guinea in exchange for access to its resources have re-ignited western fears about Chinese activities in Africa. Portrayed as a callous grab for resources that ignores the recent killing of Guinean opposition protesters by government troops, closer analysis of the situation reveals as much about foreign perceptions of China in Africa as its does about one of the continent's most significant economic relationships.

The tragedy of politics in Guinea, a country scarred by decades of autocratic rule that has produced little in the way of development, is being played out yet again under the tutelage of Moussa Dadis Camara. A captain who overthrew the government in December 2008, Camara has seen his domestic support progressively wither alongside rising African and international criticism. Faced by the threat of diplomatic isolation, his government is desperate to demonstrate its capacity to attract foreign finance – especially after a state-owned Chinese company, Chinalco, called off a deal in April 2009 to acquire rights to Guinea's iron ore resources in exchange for large-scale financing of local infrastructure projects. At the time, the Chinese government declared it was responding to international "sensitivities" – assumed to be the African Union's deep unease at the Guinean regime's attempts to illegally transfer Rio Tinto's licensing rights to Chinese interests.

The latest claims that the Chinese International Fund – a joint Chinese-Angolan finance venture based in Hong Kong – has agreed to a deal in Guinea have yet to be corroborated by Chinese sources, casting doubt on the veracity of the report (and echoing pre-emptive claims of multi-billion dollar deals with China by other African governments). Given the criticism faced by Camara, as well as Chinese business's growing wariness in operating in African environments, it is strange that this deal would either be approved by Beijing or – as a private financial transaction – need that approval. Finally, coming within a few weeks of the fourth Forum on China-Africa Co-operation in Egypt, this news from Guinea threatens to crowd out the positive development message that the Chinese government believes is overwhelmingly the case with China's engagement in other parts of the continent.

The most significant news on China's role in Africa is that as the continent's second-largest trading partner and a major investor, it remains committed to being involved. The onset of the international financial crisis has underscored the inability of Africa to escape some of the worst features of any global recession, including the volatility of the commodity prices that propel African growth, and the drying-up of sources of credit and investment. The possibility of longer-term setbacks to the continent's plans for economic recovery plans cannot be ruled out.

While China has been affected by the global economic crisis, it has been able to offset some of its worst impacts through financial prudence. With over $2tn in foreign reserves, the Chinese government has emerged from the crisis in a unique position. Given its huge demand for resources, China's need and ability to develop closer economic ties with Africa are still on track. While some G8 countries are reneging on their aid commitments to Africa and private financial institutions are scrambling to rebalance their books, China has publicly demonstrated its continued commitment towards Africa by confirming that aid levels will be maintained at the same time that it has signalled its willingness to invest in stable African economies.

Whereas once Beijing felt it could only gain access to African resources by working with western-designated "pariahs", today China no longer seeks new African markets as much as stable, long-term relationships. The days of the military junta in Guinea are numbered and, despite its attempts to claim China as a new source of support, the Chinese government knows this too.