China has long typed in Latin America to provide oil, iron ore, soybeans and other basic products, all growth engines of many countries in Latin America. But also a source of frustration for those who hope to develop their savings and exports with more than mining and agricultural products.
The chief of China, Xi Jinping, tries to show that he listens. He told a rally of Latin American leaders in Beijing on Tuesday that he wanted to extend cooperation into “emerging areas”, especially clean energy, telecommunications and artificial intelligence.
Speaking a day after China and the United States announced a provisional reduction in punitive prices against each other, Xi did not mention President Trump by name in his remarks to the representatives of the Latin American and Caribbean Community. But Xi said that China was their most reliable partner in a turbulent world, a theme that he also deployed during a recent visit to the countries of Southeast Asia and other diplomatic meetings.
“China will increase its imports of high -quality products from Latin American and Caribbean countries and encourage its companies to expand investments in this region”, ” Mr. XI said to the publicWho included President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva from Brazil and Gabriel Boric, president of Chile. Faced with “a tide that increases from unilateralism and protectionism”, China was ready to help, said Xi.
Other leaders have also made indirect references to pricing threats and other pressures from the Trump administration. “We are here to reaffirm that multilateralism and dialogue, and not unilateral impositions, are the means to meet the challenges that humanity is confronted,” Boric told Reunion.
Mr. XI did not give many details in his high speech, which – as a sign of his interest in the heritage of China – also proposed “collaborative studies” of ancient civilizations in China and Latin America.
At the same meeting, Lula said that Chinese demand and investment had been a precious economic engine for Brazil. But he also suggested that Brazil wanted to climb the technological scale.
“The digital revolution cannot be allowed to create a new technological gap between nations,” said Lula. “The development of artificial intelligence should not be the privilege of some. A fair transition to a low carbon economy also needs wide access to clean energy technology. ”
Monday in Beijing, Mr. Lula had some success in attracting Chinese investors in Brazil. Chinese companies have announced its intention to invest around $ 4.7 billion in projects, including expanding automotive manufacturing and renewable energies such as wind and solar energy, according to Mr. Lula’s office. He Also highlighted A Brazilian-Chinese proposed partnership to launch satellites with low orbit so that Brazilians in distant regions can connect to the Internet. The proposal would be a potential rival for Elon Musk’s star bond in these areas. Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications giant, is already a great presence in Brazil.
Chinese officials were “a little surprised by the way the Trump administration was affirmed in Latin America,” said Ryan BergThe director of the Americas program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. The American Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, visited at least eight countries of Latin America and the Caribbean since his entry into office, and said that the region would be a priority for him, especially against Chinese influence.
Trump accused China of controlling the Panama Canal. Under pressure, a Hong Kong company sold its two port facilities on the canal, drawing Beijing criticism. Mr. XI did not mention the controversy – except, he seemed, in an oblique reference.
China supports the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean in the “defense of their sovereignty and their independence and in an opposite external interference,” said Xi. “In the 1960s, mass rallies took place through China to support the Panamanian people to recover sovereignty on the Panama Canal.”
Ana Ionova in Rio de Janeiro and Sabrina Duque In Taipei, Taiwan, contributed the reports.