The People's Republic of China and the Republic of Liberia established diplomatic relations on February 17, 1977. On October 10, 1989, the Samuel Doe regime in Liberia "resumed diplomatic relations" with Taiwan authorities, and the Chinese side immediately announced the suspension of diplomatic relations with Liberia. On August 10, 1993, China and Liberia resumed diplomatic ties. On September 5, 1997, the Charles Taylor regime announced its recognition of "two Chinas". On the 9th, China suspended diplomatic relations with Liberia. On October 11, 2003, China and Liberia Transitional Government signed a joint communique and memorandum of understanding on the resumption of diplomatic relations, and the two countries resumed diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level. On January 12, 2004, the Chinese Embassy in Liberia reopened. In August 2005, the Liberia National Transitional Legislative Assembly passed into law a resolution upholding One-China Policy which was reiterated by the 52nd legislature in October 2006.
Since the resumption of bilateral relations in October 2003, the Sino-Liberian friendly relations and cooperation have enjoyed sound and all-round growth. High-level exchanges have become frequent, political mutual trust has been continuously consolidated, and notable progress has been made in business ties as well as people-to-people, cultural and military exchanges between the two countries.
Senior Chinese officials who visited Liberia include:
--Vice Premier Tian Jiyun (December 1984),
--Vice Foreign Minister Tian Zengpei (August 1994),
--Assistant Foreign Minister Lv Guozeng (November 2003),
--Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (January 2006, paid an official visit to Liberia and attended the inauguration ceremony of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf as the special envoy of President Hu Jintao),
--President Hu Jintao (February 2007, state visit),
--Vice Minister of Commerce Fu Ziying (2010),
--Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee Wang Jiarui (2011),
--Minister of Human Resources and Social Security Yin Weimin, (January 2012, as the special envoy of President Hu Jintao to attend the re-election inauguration ceremony of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf),
--Deputy Director of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Xiaoqiang (2012),
--Ambassador Zhong Jianhua, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on African Affairs (October, 2013),
--Deputy Director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission Cui Li (November 2014, attended the launching ceremony of the China-aid Ebola Treatment Unit),
--Foreign Minister Wang Yi (August 2015),
--Director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission Li Bin (January 2018, visited Liberia and attended the inauguration ceremony of President George Manneh Weah as the special envoy of President Xi Jinping),
--Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Wan Gang (October 2018),
--Ambassador for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zhou Yuxiao (July 2019),
--Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Wu Weihua (November 2019).
Senior Liberian officials who visited China include:
--President William Tolbert (June 1978),
--Head of State Samuel Doe (May 1982),
--Vice Chairman of the Council of State Alhaji Kromah (1996),
--Foreign Minister Thomas Nimely (August 2004),
--Defense Minister Daniel Chea (2005),
--President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (2006 and November 2015, respectively visited China while attending the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and paid a state visit to China),
--Chairman of the ruling Unity Party Charles Clark (March 2006),
--Defense Minister Brownie Samukai (September 2006),
--Justice Minister Francis Morris (October 2006 ),
--President Pro-tempore of the Senate Isaac W. Nyenabo (November 2006),
--Vice President Joseph Boakai (2009 and August 2010, attended the Liberia National Pavilion Day at the Shanghai World Expo),
--Speaker of the House Alex J. Tyler (October 2010, attended the China Pavilion Day at the Shanghai World Expo),
--Foreign Minister Olubanke King Akerele (2010),
--Foreign Minister Toga G. McIntosh (2011),
--Foreign Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan (July 2012, attended the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation),
--Finance Minister Amara Konneh (August 2013),
-- Minister of Health and Social Welfare Walter T. Gwenigale (August 2013, attended the Ministerial Forum on China-Africa Health Development),
--Minister without Portfolio Sylvester M. Grigsby (July 2016, attended the coordinator meeting of the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation),
--Foreign Minister Marjon Kamara (November 2017, attended the 4th Wuzhen Internet Conference),
--First Lady Clar Marie Weah (May 2018, private visit),
--President George Manneh Weah (September 2018, attended the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation),
--Foreign Minister Gbehzohngar Milton Findley (June 2019, attended the meeting of coordinators to implement the outcomes of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation),
--Minister of State for Presidential Affairs Nathaniel F. McGill (May2019, attended the second Forum on International Cooperation on "Belt and Road" held in Beijing and signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the "Belt and Road" initiative on behalf of the Liberian government),
--President Pro-tempore of the Senate Albert Tugbe Chie (July 2019).
With the sound development in Sino-Liberian relations, governments and peoples of both countries have come to a common understanding that sustained and stable bilateral relations are in the fundamental interests of both countries. In recent years, under the leadership of President Xi Jinping and President Weah, the two countries have carried out all-sphere cooperation under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. "Belt and Road Initiative" has effectively docked with the "Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development", and pragmatic cooperation in various fields has yielded fruitful results.
