The BRI in Latin America

Primeras contribuciones al debate de la Franja y la Ruta de China en América Latina

“…Aunque muchos de los países que han firmado MOU BRI se encuentran en el Caribe, ha habido relativamente pocos estudios que se hayan centrado específicamente en el área (Gonzalez-Vicente, 2021; Oosterveld et al, 2018) Muchos de los comentaristas del BRI en ALC lo consideran un cambio significativo en la relación con China (Herreros, 2018;Oropeza et al, 2018;Zhang, 2019;Zottele y Zottele, 2020). Sin embargo, algunos han cuestionado esto, sugiriendo que la inclusión de ALC en el BRI no refleja un cambio importante y es simplemente una nueva etiqueta para las relaciones que ya existían entre China y la región (Ferchen, 2021;Serrano-Moreno et al, 2020). Esto es paralelo al debate internacional sobre si el BRI es realmente nuevo, discutido anteriormente.…”

“…Los autores que no consideran el BRI como un cambio importante en las relaciones entre China y ALC se muestran escépticos sobre sus probables impactos económicos (Ferchen, 2021;Serrano Moreno et al, 2020). De manera similar, el Instituto Internacional de Estudios Estratégicos comenta que "es poco probable que la reciente ola de actividades relacionadas con BRI en la región de ALC traiga un cambio fundamental a las relaciones económicas entre China y ALC" (IISS, 2018: ix).…”

Belt and Road Initiative and China-Latin America Relations | A Iniciativa Cinturão e Rota e as relações China-América Latina

“…However, the Forum did not specify Latin America's role in the BRI, nor did it define the meaning of signing documents related to the initiative, so there is still a lack of concrete and coordinated actions (Rubio and Maya, 2020). Some scholars argue that the invitation to Latin America to participate in the BRI is unclear and vague, raising doubts about its potential to significantly alter the economic dynamics between China and Latin America (Ferchen, 2021;Moreno et al, 2021). the BRI, in the best case, can be interpreted as an update of China's foreign policy in Latin America, incorporating diplomatic and economic ties between China and Latin America within the discourse of enhanced "connectivity", "infrastructure" and "win-win" relations in the Global South (Moreno, 2021;Herreros, 2018;Telias, 2021).…”

China's Growing Influence in Latin America

“…Former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson once claimed that China hopes these loans will ensnarl developing countries in a debt trap, which will enable China to pressure them into giving access to natural resources (Dahir & Kazeem 2018). However, Ferchen (2018b) argues that the notion of "debt-trap diplomacy" is highly misleading, noting that Venezuela, the largest recipient of Chinese investments, has burdened China with a massive liability, both economically and politically.…”

“…China, in 2016, issued a white paper on Latin America and the Caribbean suggesting that it would foster industrial cooperation in such fields as automobiles, new energy equipment, motorcycles, and the chemical industry. As a turning point, many Latin American countries were incorporated into BRI projects and attended the China-Community of Latin America and Caribbean States Ministerial Forum in Santiago, Chile (Ferchen 2018a). At this forum, many countries gave approval for participation in the BRI, and various trade deals were signed.…”