Latin America is one of the largest developing regions in the world and plays an important role in maintaining the security of global supply chains and production chains. It is also an important partner of China in promoting South-South cooperation and building a “community of common destiny for humanity.” Since the beginning of the 21st century, China–Latin America cooperation has continued to deepen and develop, and China–Latin America relations have become a new type of cooperative relationship based on equality, mutual benefit, innovation, openness, and benefit for the people. Especially starting from the time Latin American countries joined the “Belt and Road” cooperation initiative in 2017, China–Latin America relations have continued to develop rapidly. In recent years, the international political landscape has been constantly shifting, the strategic game between China and the United States has intensified, and the United States has increased its obstruction of China–Latin America cooperation. Since the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe, the world has entered a period of turbulence and change, and Latin America was also hit by the pandemic. In the context of the current complex international situation, it is necessary for China and Latin America to take the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” as their guide in order to promote the optimization, upgrade, and innovative development of cooperation, while also making their due contributions to world peace and development. This article will review the achievements of China–Latin America cooperation made in recent years, analyze the necessity of continued advancement and the challenges faced, and propose relevant countermeasures and suggestions to allow the “Belt and Road” initiative to better promote the quality improvement and upgrade of China–Latin America relations.

I. Progress of China–Latin America “Belt and Road” cooperation under changes unseen in a century 

China adheres to its basic national policy of opening up to the outside world and is committed to building a new pattern of all-around  opening up. In particular, the “Belt and Road” initiative has attracted many Latin American countries to join with its concept of open and inclusive cooperation. Against the backdrop of intensified strategic competition among major powers and the ongoing Ukrainian crisis, China and Latin American countries are strengthening collaboration and promoting cooperation, and have achieved a series of fruitful results. 

(1) High-level exchanges are frequent and policy communication is constantly strengthened. Latin American countries have different national conditions and diverse interests. Strengthening policy communication is an important guarantee of the joint construction of the “Belt and Road.” In recent years, guided by high-level exchanges, China and Latin America have actively built bilateral and multilateral exchange mechanisms and strengthened dialogue and consultation. After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, President Xi Jinping communicated with leaders of Latin American countries such as Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador through video calls and letters. At the 6th Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) hosted by Mexico in September 2021, President Xi delivered a special video speech. After the pandemic was brought under control to a certain extent, high-level officials from China and Latin American countries carried out intensive mutual visits. In early 2022, Argentine President Fernandez and Ecuadorian President Lasso visited China to attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics. In July 2022, Cai Wei, Director General of the Department of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, paid working visits to Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay. From April 12 to 15, 2023, Brazilian President Lula led a large delegation to visit China and had a cordial meeting with President Xi. 

Under the leadership of high-level leaders, Latin American countries are increasingly enthusiastic about participating in the construction of the “Belt and Road” initiative. In early 2022, Nicaragua and Argentina signed memorandums of understanding on cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative with China in quick succession, bringing the number of Latin American countries that had joined the initiative to 21. Among these, Suriname, Cuba, and other countries have signed specific plans with China and identified key cooperation projects.

(2) Economic and trade cooperation continued to strengthen even against the global trend and its structure continued to improve. China has been Latin America’s second-largest trading partner for many years. Due to the impact of the pandemic, China–Latin America trade volume decreased slightly year-on-year in 2020, but Latin America’s exports to China bucked the trend and grew by 0.1%.¹ In the same year, total exports of Mexico, Latin America’s second-largest economy, fell by 9.5%, but its exports to China reached U.S. $7.891 billion, a year-on-year increase of 10.9%.² China–Latin America trade exceeded U.S. $450 billion in 2021, and further grew to a historical high of U.S. $485.8 billion in 2022.³ In February 2023, China and Ecuador formally completed negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement, and China is currently actively promoting free trade agreement negotiations with Nicaragua. At the same time, the development of China–Latin America trade structure is accelerating in a balanced manner. Latin America’s exports to China have shifted from focusing on primary products to greater diversification, with exports of high-tech products such as biomedicine and electronic products, as well as agricultural products such as fruits, flowers, tobacco, alcohol, coffee, quinoa, and alpaca wool continuing to expand. 

China’s investment in Latin America is trending upward. First, China’s investment in Latin America continues to increase. As of July 2021, China’s direct investment stock in Latin America exceeded U.S. $450 billion, accounting for 19% of China’s outbound foreign investment stock.⁴ From January to May 2021, China’s direct investment in Latin America was U.S. $10.38 billion, a year-on-year increase of 40%.⁵ Second, China is investing in more places in Latin America. As of the end of 2020, there were more than 3,000 Chinese-funded enterprises in Latin America, mainly distributed in the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Ecuador, Argentina, and Venezuela, with a regional coverage rate of 65.3%.⁶ Third, investment fields are becoming increasingly diversified. Currently, China’s investment in Latin America is shifting from energy and mineral mining to the promotion of international production capacity cooperation in diversified production fields, and especially extending to fields such as clean energy, information and communications, the Internet, high-end manufacturing, and medical care. According to statistics from China’s Ministry of Commerce, as of the end of 2020, the top five industries by share of China’s investment stock in Latin America were information technology services, leasing and business services, wholesale and retail, manufacturing, and scientific research and technical services. Take Mexico as an example. Currently, 40% of Chinese investment in the country is concentrated in manufacturing, 11.3% in telecommunications, 10.3% in finance, and only 9.3% in mining.⁷ Fourth, Chinese investment has created new employment opportunities in Latin America. As of 2021, China has carried out a total of 192 infrastructure projects in Latin America and the Caribbean with a total investment of U.S. $98.4 billion, providing more than 673,000 local jobs.⁸ At the same time, in recent years, Didi has launched passenger and freight transportation services in Latin America, creating many local employment opportunities. According to statistics, Didi’s five investment projects in Latin America created 162,600 jobs between 2018 and 2020, accounting for 28.74% of the total jobs created by Chinese investment in Latin America.⁹ 

(3) Infrastructure connectivity continues to advance, promoting sustainable development. The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) pointed out that infrastructure is a key engine for promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, and Latin America needs to build better infrastructure to promote changes to its economic structure.¹⁰ In recent years, China has continuously accelerated its infrastructure cooperation with Latin America, playing an important role in promoting regional transportation, energy, and informatization construction. First, China has deepened cooperation in transportation infrastructure construction. Complete transportation infrastructure is crucial for Latin American countries seeking to integrate into the global value chain.¹¹ In recent years, Chinese companies have increased their investment in Latin American transportation infrastructure and have participated in important projects such as the Port of Chancay in Peru, the reconstruction of the Belgrano Railway in Argentina, the Tren Maya in Mexico, the Oyon-Ambo Highway in Peru, and the Bogota Metro in Colombia. At the beginning of the pandemic, some projects were temporarily suspended due to social control and other reasons. However, after the pandemic was brought under control to a certain extent, many projects resumed construction and made progress. China–Argentina railway cooperation continues to advance. In early 2022, the two sides signed a number of agreements, including for the modernization of the Belgrano Norte line.¹² In 2020, a consortium consisting of China Communications Construction Company and a Portuguese company won the bidding for the first section of the Tren Maya project in Mexico. Construction on the project is accelerating, and the companies hope to begin operations on this section of the railway by the end of 2023.¹³ In 2021, Chinese companies signed new contracts worth U.S. $19.98 billion in Latin America and achieved a turnover of U.S. $7.97 billion. As of the end of 2021, Chinese companies had signed a total of U.S. $237.15 billion in contracting engineering contracts in the region and achieved a turnover of U.S. $152.4 billion.¹⁴ 

Second, China has increased cooperation in clean energy development and power grid construction. In recent years, Chinese companies have increased their participation in clean energy projects in Latin America, such as solar and wind power projects. In September 2020, the Cauchari Solar Plant project in Jujuy Province, Argentina, in which Shanghai Electric Power Construction participated in the construction, was put into commercial operation. Xinjiang Jinfeng Technology has long cooperated with Chile and signed its fourth wind power project in 2021. In 2022, the Chinese company Ming Yang Smart Energy started construction of an offshore wind power project in Brazil.¹⁵ At the same time, Huawei leverages its advanced smart photovoltaic and energy storage technologies to provide applications for power stations and off-grid communities in Latin American countries. Clean energy projects such as the solar power plant in Jujuy Province, Argentina, the rooftop photovoltaic power station at the Santiago International Airport in Chile, and the 4MWh energy storage project in Escuintla, Guatemala all use Huawei technology.¹⁶ 

Third, China has continued to strengthen digital infrastructure cooperation. The technological advantages of Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE in the 5G and the Internet fields have created new opportunities for the construction of the China–Latin America “Digital Silk Road.” In recent years, Huawei Cloud has provided stable and reliable cloud services to Latin America, assisting in the digital transformation of fields such as retail, logistics, education, finance, and medicine in the region. Following on its business operations in Chile, Brazil, and Mexico, Huawei Cloud started service cooperation in Argentina and Peru in 2020, making it one of the cloud service providers with the richest node resources in Latin America.¹⁷ Alicia Bárcena, former executive secretary of ECLAC, said that “the Belt and Road Initiative has become a model for cooperation between China and Latin America to enhance connectivity.”¹⁸ 

(4) China and Latin America carried out anti-pandemic cooperation and built a “Health Silk Road.” After the outbreak of the pandemic, China and Latin America helped each other. At the beginning of the pandemic, Latin American countries generously donated medical supplies to China. After the pandemic spread across the world, China provided a large amount of vaccines and medical supplies to Latin America, and sent medical teams to Venezuela and other countries to provide assistance, which was well received by the people of Latin America. Former Chilean President Piñera, Peruvian President Castillo, and other Latin American heads of state personally received shipments of Chinese vaccines. Serrana, a city in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, joined the China–Brazil vaccine cooperation trial and vaccinated its citizens with the Sinovac vaccine. Data from May 2021 showed that the vaccine reduced the hospitalization rate and mortality rate of infected people by 86% and 95% respectively.¹⁹ China also concluded agreements on local vaccine production with Mexico and other countries to help Latin American countries speed up vaccination.²⁰ Alicia Bárcena, executive secretary of ECLAC, said that China’s medical assistance to Latin America provided important support for the implementation of the regional health cooperation plan adopted at the 6th CELAC Summit in 2020.²¹ 

(5) People-to-people exchanges continue to strengthen, consolidating a foundation for cooperation. People-to-people connectivity provides a solid public opinion basis and social foundation for advancing the construction of the “Belt and Road”. The Chinese people’s understanding of Latin America is deepening day by day. The popularity of the Spanish language in China continues to rise. As of May 2022, there are 99 colleges and universities offering Spanish majors.²² In addition to classic writers such as Márquez and Borges, translations of other best-selling Latin American writers such as Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho, Chilean writer Bolaño, and Uruguayan writer Galeano have become very popular in China.²³ Latin American people’s understanding of China is also constantly improving. China Global Television Network has opened up publicity channels on new media such as Facebook. The number of Latin American students studying in China continues to increase. At the third ministerial meeting of the China–CELAC Forum, China pledged to provide 5,000 scholarships and 3,000 training opportunities to Latin America from 2022 to 2024.²⁴ 

II. Favorable factors for promoting China–Latin America cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative 

(1) There is growing political will in China and Latin America to advance cooperation. 

China regards Latin America as an important force and diplomatic foundation in a multipolar world, and has always planned the blueprint of its relations with Latin American countries from a strategic and long-term perspective. Since the 18th Party Congress, Latin America’s status in China’s diplomacy has continued to rise. Leaders of China and Latin American countries have established a high degree of mutual political trust and jointly established a new positioning for the China–Latin America comprehensive cooperative partnership. China has established comprehensive strategic partnerships with many countries including Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, and Argentina. China also established the China–CELAC Forum with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the largest integration organization in Latin America, and successfully held the third ministerial meeting of the China–CELAC Forum at the end of 2021. 

At present, the values of the world’s major powers are becoming increasingly antagonistic and the global political and economic system is trending towards division. However, the internal driving force of globalization still exists, a large number of international cooperation mechanisms are still in operation, most countries still need to conduct exchanges based on rules, and there is still room for cooperation at the level of mechanisms, norms, and standards.²⁵ China and Latin American countries share a consensus on promoting multilateralism, free trade, and globalization. China adheres to the path of peaceful development, focuses on building a community of common destiny for humanity and jointly building the “Belt and Road,” and proposed the Global Development Initiative. These actions have received positive responses from many countries, including Latin American countries. At the third ministerial meeting of the China–CELAC Forum, one after another, foreign ministers of the CELAC member states expressed that the “Belt and Road” initiative could become an important means of deepening China–Latin America cooperation.²⁶ 

Faced with complex and fierce competition among major powers, most Latin American countries adhere to foreign policies of diversification. After the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, most Latin American countries expressed their neutral stance and refused to follow the United States in condemning or sanctioning Russia. Moreover, the Biden administration’s continued interference in the internal affairs of Latin American countries has also caused dissatisfaction among many countries. In June 2022, the United States refused to invite the leaders of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua to attend the 9th Summit of the Americas, resulting in the absence of the heads of state of ten Latin American countries from the summit. In addition, the United States adheres to the idea of “putting its own interests first” and has been “all talk and no action” with respect to Latin American countries, which has made the latter quite disillusioned. At the beginning of 2021, Latin America sought help from many parties due to the severe pandemic. China, Russia, and other countries provided timely assistance to Latin America, while the United States continued to stockpile vaccines in large quantities. It was not until June 2021 that the United States began to provide vaccines to Latin America, and this was due to concerns that other countries would meddle in its “backyard.” This selfish behavior of the United States has caused dissatisfaction among Latin American countries.²⁷ The above factors objectively push Latin American countries to continue to value cooperation with countries outside the region, such as China and Russia. 

(2) China needs to strengthen cooperation with Latin America to achieve the new development pattern of “dual circulation.” 

Since the reform and opening up, China’s interactions with the world have become increasingly frequent. After the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, China proposed to accelerate the construction of a new pattern of development that takes domestic great circulation as the mainstay and in which domestic and international dual circulation are mutually reinforcing. Here, domestic circulation and international circulation are in a dialectical unity, promoting and complementing each other.²⁸ In 2022, Premier Li Keqiang pointed out in the Report on the Work of the Government that we must continue to expand high-level opening up to the outside world, promote the steady development of foreign trade and foreign investment, and use high-level opening up to promote in-depth reform and advance high-quality development.²⁹ Against the backdrop of intensified Sino-U.S. competition and increasing downward pressure on China’s economy, the “Belt and Road” initiative is an important tool by which China can achieve “dual circulation” and expand economic and trade cooperation with the rest of the world. First, we must maintain supply chain security. Under the current complex international situation, the security and resilience of global supply chains face great challenges.³⁰ Many Latin American countries are important global exporters of bulk commodities as well as important sources of raw materials and processed products such as soybeans, iron ore, and copper ore for China. China can strengthen cooperation with Latin America in areas such as agriculture, mining, and energy to ensure the security of its own and global supply chains. Second, we must consolidate trade cooperation. China–Latin America trade still has great potential for development. In 2021, China’s foreign trade in goods reached a record high of U.S. $6.05 trillion, but the volume of China–Latin America trade was only U.S. $450 billion, accounting for only 7.4%.³¹ Further advancing China–Latin America economic and trade relations is crucial if China is to optimize its international market layout. Third, we must strengthen production chain cooperation. Strengthening production capacity cooperation with Latin American countries can create more external opportunities for Chinese companies, provide greater space for China to deploy its production chains on a global scale, and help maintain the security of the production chains in China and Latin America. China can also strengthen cooperation with Latin American countries in areas such as renewable energy, e-commerce, cross-border logistics, and finance, and promote the transformation and upgrade of its own industries through high-level cooperation. 

(3) Latin American countries hope to strengthen cooperation with China to promote sustainable development. Currently, unbalanced development remains a severe problem in Latin America, and achieving the goal of sustainable development is an important task facing the region. Using the “Belt and Road” as a lever to promote China–Latin America cooperation and advocating an “open, inclusive, interconnected, and sustainable” world economy will help Latin American countries promote sustainable development. First, cooperation can help Latin America stabilize its foreign trade. Most Latin American countries have export-oriented economies. In 2020, Latin America experienced its worst recession since 1900, with the region’s economy shrinking by 6.8%. Against the backdrop of the ongoing pandemic, the strong growth of China–Latin America trade has become a “stabilizer” for Latin America’s foreign trade. Latin American countries are still facing problems such as inflation and slow labor market recovery. The region’s economic growth rate in 2022 was only 3.7%, and it is expected to decline to 1.3% in 2023.³² Promoting trade between China and Latin America will assist in the economic recovery of Latin American countries. 

Second, cooperation can help promote infrastructure construction in Latin America. According to statistics from the Inter-American Development Bank, if Latin America wants to achieve its sustainable development goals by 2030, it needs to invest $2.22 trillion in drinking water, sanitation, transportation, and telecommunications, and the annual investment must reach 3.12% of the region’s GDP.³³ However, most Latin American countries are facing financial constraints and urgently need to attract more foreign investment. In terms of power development and grid construction, as of 2018, only Barbados and Uruguay have basically achieved full electricity coverage, while many countries including Mexico, Argentina, and Venezuela have not yet achieved universal access to electricity.³⁴ The demand for electricity in Latin America and the Caribbean will double between 2019 and 2040.³⁵ This will place higher demands on Latin America’s power generation capacity and grid coverage. In terms of transportation infrastructure, Latin America has long relied on road and air transport as the main means of transportation, while railways, subways, and other facilities have been relatively underdeveloped. According to statistics from the Inter-American Development Bank in 2018, Latin America’s logistics infrastructure score is only higher than South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.³⁶ The logistics levels of Peru, Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, El Salvador, and other countries rank in the middle and lower portions of the list of 160 countries.³⁷ In terms of drinking water and sanitation facilities, less than 80% of urban households in countries such as Mexico, Bolivia, and Jamaica have access to tap water, and the proportion in rural areas is even lower.³⁸ Only in certain countries, including Chile, Colombia, and Peru does the urban sewer system coverage rate exceed 80%, while in Nicaragua, El Salvador, and other countries the rural sewer coverage rate is almost zero.³⁹ In addition, as the Fourth Industrial Revolution deepens, the need for developing countries to advance their digitalization construction is becoming increasingly urgent. China can leverage its own advantages to carry out cooperation with Latin American countries in digitalization and promote Latin America’s digital transformation in areas such as transportation, electricity, education, and artificial intelligence (AI). 

Third, cooperation can promote regional integration. Integration in Latin America has been slow, and it is one of the regions with the lowest proportion of intra-regional trade in the world. In Latin America, intra-regional trade accounts for 20% of the region’s total trade, far lower than in the European Union (60%) and East Asia (50%).⁴⁰ Infrastructure integration is a necessary condition for the promotion of production integration. ECLAC continues to call on Latin America to increase its level of integration in order to cope with external risks.⁴¹ Under the “Belt and Road” initiative, Latin American countries can promote regional integration through infrastructure construction and enhance the level of trade and overall competitiveness within the region. 

III. Challenges facing China–Latin America cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative 

The current international and regional situation is complex and changeable. The Russia-Ukraine conflict continues to ferment, economic globalization has encountered headwinds, China–U.S. competition in Latin America has intensified, and unstable factors still exist in some Latin American countries. In this context, China–Latin America “Belt and Road” cooperation faces many risks and challenges. 

(1) Political risks in Latin America cannot be ignored. 

The political ecosystem of Latin America has always been characterized by a cyclical pattern of power alternation between left and right. However, in recent years, the region’s political arena has been chaotic, the left-vs-right game has intensified, and domestic and foreign policies face certain uncertainties. Especially after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Latin America has fallen into a crisis of political infighting, economic recession, and social imbalance. The outside world believes that Latin America is entering “another lost decade.” The Latin American left has continued to rise recently, but with increasing internal and external factors of instability, the newly-elected left-wing parties in Latin America are facing a difficult transformation, and right-wing forces are waiting for an opportunity to make a comeback. Argentina’s left-wing ruling coalition “Citizen’s Unity” is facing a crisis. Political differences between President Alberto Fernandez and Vice President Cristina and the latter’s recent investigation for corruption have caused the government’s reputation to plummet. In May 2022, public satisfaction with the government had dropped to 35.4% from 60.8% in November 2020.⁴² The dispute between the Peruvian government and the parliament continues to intensify, and President Pedro Castillo was impeached and removed from office by Congress. Chilean President Gabriel Boric’s slow progress in reforms, coupled with continued domestic inflation and the ongoing fermentation of the Mapuche issue in the south, have intensified public dissatisfaction with the government.⁴³ Governments are busy consolidating their ruling positions and promoting domestic reforms, and their energy for external cooperation is inevitably affected. The left-right game in Latin America continues to intensify, and changes in national regimes are likely to lead to a lack of continuity in their foreign policies. Overall, the promotion of the “Belt and Road” initiative in Latin America still confronts a relatively complex political environment, and businesses operating in Latin America face certain challenges. 

(2) Economic risks continue to ferment in Latin American countries. For a long time, Latin American countries have had problems with insufficient resilience and risk resistance in their economic structures. Under the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Latin America’s economic recovery has slowed down and the region faces numerous economic risks. One is the risk of disruption in food supply chains. The current global pandemic situation is becoming more uncertain. As an important source of imports of soybeans and corn for China, Latin America’s food production and transportation have been affected to a certain extent. Against the backdrop of the Ukraine crisis, the U.S. sanctions on Russia have had a wide-ranging impact on global fertilizer supply, posing a major risk to Latin American soybean and corn production. The second is the debt risk. In recent years, the fiscal conditions of Latin American countries have deteriorated and the pressure of foreign debt has increased sharply. In particular, Argentina suffered a financial crisis and owed huge sums of money to the International Monetary Fund. As of the first quarter of 2022, the country’s total foreign debt had reached U.S. $274.355 billion.⁴⁴ El Salvador’s public debt accounts for more than 80% of its GDP, and about $800 million in debt will mature in 2023.⁴⁵ A debt crisis in Latin American countries will inevitably impact Chinese investment and project construction in the region. The third is the exchange rate risk. The economic structures of many Latin American countries are fragile, their ability to resist risks is poor, and their exchange rates are subject to significant fluctuations. Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine crisis in early 2022, the global economic situation has become increasingly unstable, the Federal Reserve’s continued interest rate hikes have produced spillover effects, and Latin American countries are facing pressure from rising inflation and currency depreciation. In June 2022, the inflation rates in Venezuela and Argentina reached 14.5% and 5.3% respectively, and the annual inflation rates are expected to reach 53.5% and 36.2% respectively.⁴⁶ From the end of 2021 to July 2022, the U.S. dollar appreciated significantly against the currencies of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, and other countries, and the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar to the Chilean peso reached a record of 1:1000 for a time.⁴⁷ High inflation and exchange rate fluctuations may affect Latin America’s ability to attract foreign investment and even cause some existing foreign investment to leave. The fourth is the risk of protectionism. Nationalist tendencies have intensified in Latin America. Mexican President Lopez and Peruvian President Castillo both advocate prioritizing their respective countries, and trade protectionism and some more radical nationalization policies may affect foreign cooperation. At the same time, against the backdrop of the economic downturn, some Latin American countries have launched anti-dumping investigations in order to improve their export trade or set up barriers against Chinese products and investment. The risk of trade frictions should not be underestimated. 

(3) There are some differences in the Chinese and Latin American understandings of development. China and Latin American countries are geographically distant, with great differences in political systems and cultures, as well as differences in discourse systems and ways of thinking. Latin America was long colonized by European and North American countries, and is prone to suspicion of foreign forces and foreign capital. Due to their cultural traditions, some Latin American Indigenous peoples attach great importance to environmental protection and even say that they would forgo development if was in conflict with environmental protection. In addition, the U.S. and European media have a strong influence in Latin America, and the “China threat theory,” “colonial plunder theory,” and “debt trap theory” still find a certain audience in Latin America. Some Latin American media outlets have stated that China has not only burdened Latin American countries with huge debts by providing loans to them, but also failed to fulfill its extraterritorial obligations with regard to human rights. They have also accused Chinese companies of violating community rights, damaging the local environment, and so on.⁴⁸ In recent years, social movements have emerged one after another in Latin American countries. In Ecuador and other countries, there have been many social movements in which Indigenous peoples oppose government development projects, and these have had a certain impact on Chinese companies’ projects in local areas. Finding a way to strengthen communication and seek common ground while setting aside differences on the above-mentioned issues is a major challenge facing “Belt and Road” cooperation between China and Latin America. 

(4) The United States has increased its interference in China–Latin America cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative. The Trump administration has characterized China as a “competitor” and primary “adversary” of the United States. The 2017 National Security Strategy attempted to completely negate the policy of engagement with China pursued by the U.S. government in the past and proposed a China strategy that was essentially a zero-sum mentality.⁴⁹ After taking office, Biden continued to view China as a strategic competitor of the United States and viewed strategic competition with China as an important means to reverse relative decline and regain U.S. global leadership. At the same time, voices from U.S. conservatives and the military calling for curbing China–Latin America cooperation continue to grow stronger. In March 2022, U.S. Southern Command Commander Laura Richardson and Senator Marco Rubio accused China of expanding its influence in Latin America and undermining regional security and stability at a U.S. Senate hearing.⁵⁰ They falsely claimed that China was using loans from the Belt and Road Initiative to trap Latin American countries.⁵¹ Pushed in this direction by multiple factors, excluding China’s influence in Latin America remains one of the focuses of Biden’s Latin American policy. Although, on the surface, Biden does not appear to interfere in Latin America’s internal affairs as blatantly as Trump, the core of his anti-China exclusion policy has not changed. Latin America is increasingly becoming one of the battlefields in the strategic game between China and the United States. First, the United States sows discord between China and Latin America by smearing China. Since 2021, senior U.S. officials have never failed to mention China when visiting Latin America, hawking arguments such as the “China threat theory,” “debt trap theory,” and “resource plunder theory” to Latin American governments, and warning Latin American countries to be aware of China’s “harmful activities.” At the same time, the U.S. is  also using its control over Latin American media to intensify public opinion propaganda, causing some Latin American media to fixate on topics such as China’s “threat to cybersecurity” and “violations of human rights.” At the end of March 2022, Mr. Natiello, an official of the U.S. Agency for International Development, told the Senate that the United States is stepping up investigations and reporting on illegal and unregulated fishing by Chinese fishing vessels off the coast of Ecuador.⁵² Second, the United States increases the intensity of “anti-Chinese exclusion” through rule-making. After taking office, Biden introduced a number of cooperation initiatives in an attempt to incorporate more countries into the cooperation mechanisms established by the United States and accelerate “decoupling” from China. At the G7 summit held in June 2021, the United States proposed the “Build Back a Better World” plan, intending to increase the binding of its own economic and trade interests with various countries and the formulation of cooperative rules so as to contain China’s “Belt and Road” initiative.⁵³ In September of the same year, the United States took the lead in selling the plan to Latin America, sending Deputy National Security Advisor and Deputy Director of the National Economic Council Daleep Singh to lead a delegation that visited Colombia, Ecuador, and Panama and pledged to provide funding for projects in fields such as agriculture, women’s development, and digital integration in the three countries.⁵⁴ After proposing the “Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity,” Biden announced the “Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity” plan at the 9th Summit of the Americas in June 2022. The essential goal of the plan is to lock in Latin American resources, energy, and markets, while using rules such as transparency, security, and labor standards to exclude China from the regional supply chain system, forcing the Latin American and Chinese economies to decouple, and thereby establishing a global system of rules to contain China and achieve the strategic goal of regulating China. Third, the United States uses cooperation mechanisms to exert direct pressure. The U.S. government uses existing cooperation agreements with Latin American countries to constantly force Latin American countries to choose sides between China and the United States in order to contain China–Latin America cooperation. In October 2021, China Aerospace Information Technology Co., Ltd. won the bid for the Chilean Civil Registry Project and planned to provide relevant system construction services for the country’s Civil Registry and Identification Service. After the news was announced, the United States immediately sent a delegation to Chile and threatened to cancel its visa-free program for Chile on the grounds of “security review,” forcing Chile to cancel its cooperation project with China Aerospace Information Technology.⁵⁵ In addition, the United States has used similar means to continue to suppress China–Latin America cooperation in areas such as 5G and new energy. Amid continued interference and obstruction from the United States, China–Latin America cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative may be faced with more complex regional political factors. 

IV. Suggestions for promoting cooperation between China and Latin America under the Belt and Road Initiative 

As one of the world’s largest developing regions, Latin America is of great strategic significance to China’s realization of the new development pattern of “dual circulation” and the promotion of South-South cooperation. Under the current complex international situation, the “Belt and Road” initiative can become an important platform and leverage point for China and Latin America to deepen cooperation and promote world peace and development. China should be guided by the Global Development Initiative, uphold a correct outlook on ethics and gain, steadily advance China–Latin America cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthen cooperation with Latin American countries in areas such as policy communication, unimpeded trade, financial connectivity, infrastructure connectivity, and people-to-people bonds, build China–Latin America cooperation into a model for South-South cooperation, provide a good example for the sustainable development of developing countries, and play its due role in maintaining global peace and development. 

(1) Overall principles and objectives 

China should adhere to the correct view of ethics and gain and the principle of mutual benefit, take South-South cooperation as the main tone, view the creation of a “China–Latin America community of common destiny” as our long-term goal, and jointly promote development and revitalization with Latin American countries. China and Latin America should be guided by the Global Development Initiative, continue to support multilateralism, commit to maintaining the rule-based multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core, and promote free and open trade and investment. China and Latin America should use the Belt and Road Initiative as a cooperation platform, start with bilateral cooperation, expand the stage for multilateral cooperation, strengthen the connections among the social and economic agenda of the various countries and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through communication at all levels, promote cooperation between China and Latin America in various fields such as poverty reduction, green development, and women’s development, and play their due roles in building a global development partnership and the great goal of a community of common destiny for humanity. 

(2) Continue to comprehensively promote “Five Connectivities” projects 

First, we must strengthen policy communication and consolidate the top-level design of “Belt and Road” construction. China and Latin America need to strengthen leadership by high-level leaders. China should actively strengthen high-level exchanges with Latin American countries to consolidate the political foundation for cooperation. We should send high-level officials to visit Latin America when appropriate, invite senior officials from Latin American countries to visit China for exchanges, and increase coordination around “Belt and Road” cooperation. While promoting bilateral exchanges, we can also push forward regional cooperation between China and Latin America at the regional level. We can make use of existing cooperation frameworks such as the China–CELAC Forum to promote strategic cooperation with Latin America at the regional level, intensify dialogue and consultation with regional and sub-regional organizations such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, ECLAC, the Southern Common Market, the Pacific Alliance, and the Puebla Group, and help promote the integrated development of Latin America. 

Second, we must strengthen cooperation in trade chains, supply chains, and production chains and promote trade connectivity. The first thing is to upgrade some bilateral free trade agreements and trade arrangements as appropriate. China can increase imports of Latin American specialty agricultural products such as quinoa, blueberries, avocados, and nuts as well as finished products, and help promote and market Latin American agricultural products in China. We can use our technological and financial advantages to strengthen innovative cooperation with Latin America’s agricultural sectors and solve problems such as fertilizer shortages. We can strengthen the alignment of product market access rules with Latin American countries and promote the export of Chinese mobile phones and other electronic products to Latin America. The second thing is to strengthen e-commerce cooperation with Latin American countries. We can share e-commerce experience with Latin American countries, help them build digital economy platforms, give more Latin American products access to Chinese e-commerce platforms, and promote more Chinese products to enter Latin American e-commerce platforms. We can promote the facilitation of monetary payments, completely break through the geographical barriers faced by China–Latin America trade cooperation, and open up a vast market. The third thing is to strengthen cooperation in manufacturing and green production chains and achieve innovative development. Chinese companies can improve the integration of China–Latin America manufacturing industry chains by expanding investment in local manufacturing based on a thorough investigation of the operational risks in Latin American countries. They can increase investment in Latin America’s green industries and promote the development of new energy, transportation electrification, and other fields in Latin America. Through high-level cooperation in the industrial chain, China and Latin America can promote the integration of markets, technologies, and industries, which can not only help Latin American countries achieve sustainable industrialization, but also provide the driving force for the healthy development of China–Latin America economic cooperation. 

Third, we must enhance the depth of infrastructure cooperation and promote collaboration on sustainable development. The first thing is to strengthen rule-making and supervision. China should increase its guidance and supervision of enterprises with foreign operations, adhere to the spirit of the “Clean Silk Road” and the “Green Silk Road,” urge Chinese companies to respect and abide by the laws and regulations of Latin American countries, increase dialogue with trade unions and environmental protection organizations in Latin American countries, and explore responsible, low-risk, high-quality, and sustainable infrastructure cooperation plans. The second thing is to expand areas of cooperation. In accordance with the sustainable development goals of Latin American countries, we can focus on the construction needs of various countries in infrastructure fields such as transportation, energy, and water supply and create a number of landmark projects to improve the living standards of local people, while helping Latin American countries increase their integration into the global value chain. We can pay more attention to “new infrastructure construction,” strengthen network infrastructure cooperation, and promote the development of the “Digital Silk Road.” We can strengthen medical and health cooperation and jointly build a “Health Silk Road” through medical hardware facilities and R&D cooperation. The third thing is to improve project quality. We can take “sustainability” as the key direction of infrastructure construction cooperation, solve key issues such as financial support, investment environment, and risk management, create more jobs and cultivate human resources for Latin American countries, and promote the sustainable development of the Latin American economies. The fourth thing is to develop innovative cooperation models. We can strengthen communication and cooperation with Latin American companies, promote localized project operations, and promote the mutual benefit of both China and Latin America. We can learn from the experience of enterprises from Europe, the United States, and other regions to better conduct operations in Latin America and explore the joint development of the Latin American market with third-party enterprises. 

Fourth, we must strengthen financial connectivity and safeguard China–Latin America economic and trade cooperation. Financial cooperation plays an important supporting role in “Belt and Road” construction. China can consider accepting more Latin American countries into the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and other financial cooperation systems as well as the China–Latin America Investment Cooperation Fund at an appropriate time. We can continue to promote the internationalization of the RMB in Latin America and increase the use of RMB settlement in trade and investment cooperation with Latin American countries to reduce the risks created by fluctuations in the U.S. dollar exchange rate. We can promote the adoption of RMB investment and bond issuance rules by Latin American enterprises, create conditions for countries to participate in RMB crude oil futures and iron ore futures trading, and provide stable, reliable, efficient, and sustainable financing support for China–Latin America economic and trade cooperation. 

Fifth, we must expand areas of exchange and promote mutual understanding between the peoples of China and Latin America. China and Latin American countries should continue to promote exchanges and cooperation in the fields of low-carbon economy, rural construction, medical and health care, disaster prevention and mitigation, culture and art, and women and children’s development, advance mutual learning between China and Latin America and promote sustainable development, and at the same time, build a broad public opinion foundation for China–Latin America cooperation. We can continue to promote educational cooperation between China and Latin American countries, increase support for research in China on the Latin American region and individual countries, and at the same time, cultivate more Latin American people who understand and are friendly to China. We can strengthen international communication capabilities, select a number of outstanding works on topics such as ancient and contemporary Chinese culture, political diplomacy, economic development, and social governance, translate them, and introduce them to Latin American countries. We can combine efforts in traditional media such as television and newspapers with efforts in new media such as social networks to increase the dissemination of Chinese ideas and tell China’s stories well in Latin America.