China’s relationship with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is one of the most consequential bilateral partnerships in contemporary Africa-Asia relations. Over the past two decades, the DRC has become China’s single most important source of cobalt and a key supplier of copper, both of which are indispensable for China’s industrial upgrading, battery production, and green energy transition. At the same time, China has become by far the most important trading partner of the DRC, a major investor, and a diplomatic interlocutor. This dense web of economic and political ties is frequently portrayed as one-sided, exploitative, or even neo-colonial. Yet despite being deeply unequal, the relationship cannot be reduced to a one-sided dependency.