Beijing Embarks on A New Route in Latin America

According to observers, Argentina’s participation in the Belt and Road Initiative is a big step forward in Beijing’s deepening connections with Latin America. Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez signed his nation for China’s huge infrastructure initiative. The process happened during a high-profile visit to Beijing last week for the opening of the Winter Olympics; this cleared the door for investments worth more than US$23 billion.

The United States and other Western countries had a diplomatic boycott. However, Fernandez was one of the few South American leaders, known as “America’s backyard,” to attend the opening ceremony.

Reduction of Dependency on The US

Argentina’s participation in the Belt and Road Initiative follows Fernandez’s announcement during a visit to Russia. He said that his country must stop its economic “dependency” on the United States and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Argentina is the first Latin American country to join Beijing’s plan. The plan is a global platform for Chinese investment in trains, ports, and highways. Following a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Fernandez on Sunday, the two sides vowed to strengthen cooperation in commerce, currency, agriculture, energy, and other sectors.

According to Jiang Shixue, a professor and director of Shanghai University’s Centre for Latin American Studies, the China-Argentina pact is important. He said that it would strengthen Beijing’s relations with the rest of Latin America. Hence, other big economies may follow suit. With the noteworthy omissions of Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia – the region’s largest economies – a total of 19 Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations had joined the belt and road network before Argentina’s admission.

Jiang remarked that Argentina is a critical nation in terms of collective economic and political strength. According to Yue Yunxia, a Latin American specialist at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, negotiations between Argentina and China on signing a belt and road memorandum of understanding (MOU) took a long time. However, the “hard-won” result was notable. Argentina’s participation in the Belt and Road Initiative is noteworthy as a huge Latin American country. According to Yue, this is a breakthrough.

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