Latin America Archives - Friends of Socialist China

Trump, Panama and the Monroe Doctrine

Donald Trump has declared that the United States “will not let China take over the Panama Canal”.

Start with the obvious: China does not own, run or control the Panama Canal, and has no plans to do so. The canal is the sovereign property of Panama, operated by the Panama Canal Authority. The Chinese Embassy in Panama has stated plainly that China has never participated in the canal’s management or operation, respects Panama’s sovereignty over it, and recognises it as a permanently neutral international waterway. There is no Chinese takeover, planned or otherwise.

What actually exists is a modest commercial footprint. A Hong Kong company, CK Hutchison, won – through open bidding – the rights to handle cargo and warehousing at two terminals at either end of the canal. Terminals, not the waterway; commerce, not control. Chinese vessels transit the canal paying the same tolls, under the same rules, as everyone else.

And even that footprint is being dismantled: under relentless US pressure, Hutchison’s ports are being sold to a consortium led by the US asset manager BlackRock, while Panama has already been strong-armed out of the Belt and Road Initiative.

There’s a rich historical irony here. The one country that has actually seized and controlled the canal is the United States. Washington engineered Panama’s secession from Colombia in 1903 to build and own the canal; the US held Panama as a colonial enclave for most of the twentieth century; and invaded the country in 1989, killing hundreds of Panamanians. It returned the canal only because a mass sovereignty movement, and the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, forced it to. To this day the US retains a treaty-based claim to send troops into Panama whenever it unilaterally decides a “security risk” exists. If you want to identify the foreign power that constrains Panama’s sovereignty, there it is.

This is the Monroe Doctrine, alive and well. Trump’s own National Security Strategy states the aim plainly: to “deny non-Hemispheric competitors the ability to… own or control strategically vital assets in our Hemisphere”. Latin America is once again to be treated as the imperial backyard, and any Chinese presence – however commercial, however welcomed by the host nation – recast as a hostile incursion to be purged.

And the canal is only one piece on a much larger board. Driving Chinese investors out of Panama belongs to a broader global strategy: the same logic behind Washington’s designs on Greenland, Iceland, the Baltic and the Strait of Hormuz. The goal is to control the world’s trade routes, keep the oil trade priced in dollars, and preserve a financial system so thoroughly weaponised that the US can seize any country’s assets at will – as it has done with Venezuela’s gold, Russia’s reserves and Iran’s savings. Panama’s canal is a chokepoint on that map, and the “China threat” is simply the pretext for tightening Washington’s grip on it.

But Latin American countries are turning to China for a reason. Since establishing ties with Panama in 2017, China has helped revive stalled infrastructure and supported the country’s coffee industry through the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation. Across the region, trade with, and investment from, China have grown more than 20-fold since 2000, and the new Chancay mega-port in Peru is reshaping trade across the Pacific – cooperation on terms of sovereign equality and mutual benefit that Washington has never offered and never will.

The real question isn’t whether China will “take over” the Panama Canal. It’s whether Panama, and the region, get to make their own choices – or whether the empire next door still decides for them.

China and Vietnam support Venezuela after devastating earthquakes

Following the devastating double earthquakes that hit Venezuela on June 24, which at time of writing had claimed at least 1,450 lives with more than 3,100 injured and 50,000 or more people missing, and caused extensive damage to infrastructure, including homes, hospitals and the country’s main international airport, China and its socialist neighbour Vietnam have joined the international relief effort for their sister nation in Latin America.

On June 26, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolences to Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodriguez.

On behalf of the Chinese government and the Chinese people, Xi mourned those killed in the earthquakes and expressed sincere sympathy to the bereaved families and those injured. China, he said, stands ready to provide assistance to Venezuela in disaster relief and reconstruction.

He also expressed confidence that under the leadership of the Venezuelan government, the Venezuelan people will overcome the disaster and rebuild their homes at an early date.

At time of writing, it was announced at the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s regular press conference on June 29 that China has decided to offer additional aid to Venezuela for post-quake relief and reconstruction.

According to spokesperson Guo Jiakun, the additional emergency material assistance is worth 100 million yuan (about 14.67 million US dollars), following the cash assistance that has already been provided.

Guo had previously responded to relevant questions at press conferences on June 25 and June 26, where he said that both the Chinese government and the Red Cross Society of China will provide emergency humanitarian aid to Venezuela, adding that the Venezuelan government has thanked China for its support.

In the meantime, Chinese in Venezuela lost no time in supporting relief efforts once the earthquakes struck, with several Chinese-funded enterprises in the country mobilising relief efforts.

The Xinhua News Agency reports that the companies responded quickly to the disaster and, under the guidance of the Chinese Embassy, coordinated with local Chinese communities and business associations to take part in relief work. Their efforts included providing heavy machinery and medical supplies and deploying rescue teams.

Overseas Chinese in Venezuela have so far donated about 500 tonnes of relief supplies. The supplies, including bottled water, biscuits, diapers, milk, rice, sugar and fish, have benefited nearly 10,000 families affected by the disaster.

Xinhua also introduced the moving story of Pitney Delgado, a Venezuelan worker, who has worked alongside Chinese colleagues for more than ten years. When Xinhua interviewed him, he had been working in the relief effort for more than 50 hours without rest.

Delgado said years of working with Chinese colleagues had left him with a lasting impression of their “warm hearts,” strengthening his willingness to help others in times of crisis. That commitment was reinforced by a practical skill: more than a decade ago, while working at a Chinese company, he learned to operate heavy machinery under Chinese mentors.

He first met Jiang Wangbing, now president of the China-Venezuela Chamber of Commerce, in 2015, when he began learning crane operation.

“It was a huge machine weighing dozens of tonnes,” Delgado said. “At first I was nervous. One mistake could damage property or hurt someone.”

With patient instruction, he said he mastered basic crane operations within a week. “The training was very focused. They wanted you to learn everything,” he said.

After the earthquakes, the China-Venezuela Chamber of Commerce quickly mobilised cranes and heavy machinery for rescue operations at collapsed buildings. Delgado joined without hesitation. He said he could not stop working after seeing on social media people digging through rubble with their bare hands. “Without machines, how could we clear the debris?” he said. “It would be impossible.”

Asked about working under dangerous conditions, he said: “There were aftershocks and unstable structures. Of course, I was afraid. But when I thought people might still be trapped, I could not stop.”

“As long as I am needed here, as long as there are still people to rescue, I will keep working.”

Meanwhile, socialist Vietnam has launched a major national effort to support Venezuela.

The country’s Ministry of National Defence promptly decided to deploy an 82-member military humanitarian and disaster relief team to support search and rescue operations and post-earthquake recovery efforts. To support relief efforts, the Vietnam People’s Army has established a humanitarian assistance mission comprising command personnel, a military engineering search-and-rescue unit, medical personnel, and a canine search-and-rescue unit.

During the mission, the Vietnamese force will use search dogs to locate victims trapped under collapsed structures, conduct urban search-and-rescue operations, provide emergency medical assistance to survivors, and carry out other humanitarian tasks to help Venezuelan authorities and local communities recover from the disaster.

Addressing a meeting to assign tasks to the rescuers in the capital Hanoi, General Nguyen Tan Cuong, Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) and Deputy Minister of National Defence, stressed that the mission carries profound international significance, reflecting the party and state’s foreign policy, contributing to enhancing the country’s reputation in global disaster response and reaffirming the traditional friendship and comprehensive partnership between Vietnam and Venezuela.

He stressed that the operation will be demanding and potentially dangerous, requiring close coordination with personnel from the Vietnamese People’s Public Security force, international rescue teams and Venezuelan authorities and people. He instructed the team to comply with local laws, ensure the safety of personnel and equipment, actively assist local communities within their capabilities, and uphold the image and traditions of the VPA throughout the mission.

The mission is also transporting about 88 tonnes of equipment and relief supplies, including 50 compressed ration bars, 1,600 tents and 15 generators.

For its part, the Ministry of Public Security also held a departure ceremony in Hanoi on June 28 for a 41-member search and rescue team heading to Venezuela.

Following instructions from Vietnam’s party and state leadership, the ministry decided to send a specialised team to support searching for missing victims, rescue and emergency response operations, and post-disaster recovery efforts.

Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Minister Senior Lieutenant General Le Van Tuyen said the deployment reflects not only humanitarian support but also international solidarity and the traditional friendship between Vietnam and Venezuela.

Estela del Valle Quijada Suarez, Chargé d’Affaires of the Venezuelan Embassy in Vietnam, expressed appreciation to Vietnam’s party, state, government and Ministry of Public Security for the timely assistance, describing the mission as a symbol of friendship, solidarity, and mutual support between the two countries’ people during a difficult period.

Vietnam Airlines, the country’s national carrier, organised a special flight to carry the 124 members of the two rescue teams, their 10 search and rescue dogs, approximately 25 tonnes of humanitarian supplies, specialised equipment and rescue gear to support relief operations in the earthquake-affected areas.

To ensure the timely deployment of the mission, Vietnam Airlines mobilised extensive resources, including ground service personnel and a dedicated flight crew of 23 members. The airline also completed logistical preparations and flight clearance procedures within a short timeframe to meet the urgent requirements of the mission.

Laureano Ortega visits China

Laureano Ortega Murillo, Presidential Advisor of Nicaragua for the Promotion of Investment, Trade and International Cooperation, and Coordinator for Cooperation with China, visited China recently.

On June 22, Laureano and his delegation met with Vice-minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee (IDCPC) Ma Hui.

The following article was originally published on the IDCPC website.

Ma Hui Meets with Laureano Ortega Murillo, Presidential Advisor of Nicaragua and Coordinator for Cooperation with China

Beijing, June 22 (IDCPC) – Ma Hui, Vice-minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, met here today with a delegation headed by Laureano Ortega Murillo, Presidential Advisor of Nicaragua for the Promotion of Investment, Trade and International Cooperation, and Coordinator for Cooperation with China.

Ma said that since the two countries resumed diplomatic relations five years ago, China-Nicaragua relations have achieved leapfrog development under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state. China appreciates Nicaragua’s firm adherence to the one-China principle and will continue to support Nicaragua in safeguarding national sovereignty and dignity, independently choosing a development path suited to its national conditions, and opposing foreign interference. The CPC cherishes its traditional friendship with the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) of Nicaragua, and stands ready to deepen the exchange of experience in state governance and administration and expand the breadth and depth of inter-party exchanges, so as to advance sustained and steady development of China-Nicaragua relations. Ma also briefed the guests on the rich essence of Xi Jinping Thought on Party Building and on the education campaign on establishing and practicing the correct view of governance performance.

Laureano highly commended the results of bilateral cooperation over the past five years. He reiterated Nicaragua’s firm adherence to the one-China principle, and said that inter-party exchanges are an important pillar of bilateral relations. The FSLN stands ready to further deepen inter-party exchanges and cooperation, strengthen the sharing of experience in party governance and state governance, and deliver greater benefits to the two peoples.

Erwin Ramirez, Minister of Development, Industry and Commerce of Nicaragua, Ramiro José Cruz Flores, Nicaragua’s Ambassador to China, and others attended the meeting.

China and Brazil hold Comprehensive Strategic Dialogue

Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira visited China, May 31-June 2, at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

On June 1, they held the fifth China-Brazil Foreign Ministerial-Level Comprehensive Strategic Dialogue in Beijing.

Wang Yi stated that in recent years, under the strategic guidance of President Xi Jinping and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, China-Brazil relations have achieved a milestone leap from a comprehensive strategic partnership to a China-Brazil community with a shared future. Practical cooperation across various fields has continuously improved and upgraded, bringing the peoples of the two countries closer than ever before. China and Brazil have maintained close coordination on the international stage, demonstrating a sense of responsibility and emerging as a vital force for maintaining stability and promoting development in today’s world. With changes unseen in a century accelerating and the international community increasingly longing for peace and stability, reform of the global governance system should be placed on the agenda as soon as possible. Both sides should fully implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continue to deepen the building of a China-Brazil community with a shared future, and jointly withstand external challenges. The two countries should build greater synergy in advancing their respective modernisation processes and strengthening solidarity and self-reliance among Global South countries, while providing greater certainty for a turbulent world.

Mauro Vieira stated that the Brazil-China relationship is a benchmark for developing countries in upholding independence, strengthening solidarity and enhancing coordination. The successful mutual visits between the two heads of state have elevated the bilateral relationship to a China-Brazil community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet. This has provided crucial strategic guidance for both sides to deepen political mutual trust and strengthen bonds of cooperation, which holds even greater significance in the current international context.

Mauro Vieira also met with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng on the same day.

Pointing out that practical cooperation between China and Brazil is highly complementary and enjoys a strong internal driving force, Han said both sides should give better play to the role of mechanisms such as the China-Brazil High-level Coordination and Cooperation Committee to work for greater science and technology cooperation, with higher added value and greater strategic significance.

Vieira said at present, multilateralism is suffering an unprecedented blow, and it is particularly important for Brazil and China to deepen the construction of the community of a shared future.

China and Cuba stand together at UN

During his recent stay in New York, where he attended the United Nations Security Council high-level meeting on ‘Upholding the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter and Strengthening the UN-centred International System’, called by China during its rotating presidency, along with the meeting of the Group of Friends of Global Governance, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also held numerous bilateral meetings with his counterparts who had also made special trips to join the meetings.

On May 27, Wang met with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla.

Having conveyed President Xi Jinping’s sincere greetings to Comrade Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz and President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, Wang noted that the theme of the UN meeting has received wide response and support. To achieve its goal, it is essential to respect the sovereignty and independence of all countries and oppose all forms of power politics and bullying. The Cuban people, united as one, firmly safeguard their legitimate rights and interests, demonstrating a strong will to oppose external blockade and interference, which has earned the respect of the international community. China will continue to stand up for justice for Cuba, support the just cause of the Cuban people, and assist Cuba in its economic and social development.

Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla thanked China for inviting Cuba to the meeting, stating that the world today is facing turmoil and disorder. Only China is capable of convening such a meeting, building consensus among the international community, and safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the Global South. Cuba is experiencing its most severe situation since the revolution, the root cause of which is the US blockade and sanctions against Cuba. Cuba appreciates China’s firm support for its sovereignty and security, as well as the assistance and vocal support provided during difficult times. This fully demonstrates the special friendship between Cuba and China.

The previous day, Minister Rodríguez had addressed the Security Council meeting.

In his remarks, he acknowledged China’s leadership in convening the debate and linked the defence of the international order to the need to address conflicts and threats affecting global stability.

The Foreign Minister denounced US policy toward Cuba, which he described as a violation of international law and a threat to regional peace. He rejected the indictment against Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, considering it a politically motivated decision, and warned of its possible use as a pretext to justify military aggression against the island. He also noted that the energy blockade and the tightening of the embargo have serious humanitarian consequences for the Cuban population.

He reiterated that Cuba does not pose a threat to the United States and reaffirmed the country’s willingness to engage in bilateral dialogue on issues of common interest, always based on respect for sovereignty and non-interference. Finally, he called on the international community, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Global South, the UN Security Council, and the UN General Assembly to act to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe or military aggression against Cuba.

Brazil’s Lula hails China-developed surgical robot as ‘incredible’

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva recently performed a simulated surgery from 1,400 kilometres away, using a Chinese-built Toumai MT-1000 surgical robot – the world’s only commercial remote surgery system supporting all major specialties. He remarked: “It is incredible to see up close how innovation can expand access, save lives, and further strengthen Brazil’s Unified Health System.”

Brazil’s Unified Health System is one of the largest free, universal public health systems on the planet. Chinese surgical-robotics technology, developed by Shanghai MicroPort MedBot, is being integrated in the service of a public, free-at-the-point-of-use system. At the cancer hospital Lula visited, annual patient throughput has already risen from around 400 to 680 since the Toumai was installed.

China is now Brazil’s largest trading partner, with two-way trade of around $188 billion in 2024. As Lula has put it, China is Brazil’s “best partner.” This cooperation goes well beyond soybeans and other primary commodities; it includes assisting Brazil’s industrial strategy and working closely on cutting-edge medical technology.

China stands with Cuba against illegal indictment of Raúl Castro

On 20 May, the Trump administration unsealed a federal criminal indictment in Miami against 94-year-old Raúl Castro – former president of Cuba and one of the historic leaders of the Cuban Revolution – along with five other Cuban officials. The indictment, on charges including conspiracy to kill US nationals and the destruction of aircraft, was a calculated political provocation at a moment of maximum US pressure on the island.

China’s response, the following day, was unambiguous: a public rebuke calling on Washington to “stop wielding the big stick of sanctions and judicial measures against Cuba”, and a reaffirmation of Beijing’s firm support for Cuban sovereignty.

In the following article, our co-editor Carlos Martinez situates the indictment in the wider US regime-change campaign, examines China’s diplomatic and material solidarity with Cuba, and traces the six-decade partnership that gives it weight.

On Wednesday 20 May the Trump administration unsealed a federal criminal indictment in Miami against 94-year-old Raúl Castro, former President of Cuba and one of the key historic leaders of the Cuban Revolution, alongside five other Cuban officials. The charges include conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder, and two counts of destruction of aircraft.

The pretext given is the 1996 downing by Cuban air force MiGs of two aircraft operated by the Miami-based exile group “Brothers to the Rescue”.

The indictment is a transparent political provocation. As the Cuban government made clear in its statement on the subject, “Brothers to the Rescue” was not a humanitarian organisation but a counter-revolutionary terrorist operation founded by long-time CIA-linked Cuban exile José Basulto, which had violated Cuban airspace at least 25 times between 1994 and 1996, despite formal complaints filed by Cuba with the US State Department, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

The downing of this terrorist group’s aircraft was nothing more than the defence of Cuban sovereign airspace – an act of self-defence explicitly protected by the United Nations Charter, the 1944 Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, and the established principles of air sovereignty and proportionality.

Meanwhile, the hypocrisy is breathtaking. The same US government accusing Cuba of murder has, in recent months, killed nearly 200 people and destroyed 57 vessels in international waters of the Caribbean and the Pacific, on obviously false allegations of drug trafficking. These are, in the precise legal terms used by the Cuban government, “extrajudicial executions” under international law, and murders under US law itself. The accuser is the world’s most prolific extrajudicial killer.

The Castro indictment is not an isolated legal proceeding. It is the latest move in an open campaign of regime change. The Trump administration has tightened the six-decade economic blockade into a full-scale genocidal energy embargo, threatening tariffs against any country selling oil to Cuba and cutting fuel imports by an estimated 90 percent. Blackouts of up to 22 hours a day are the result, with all the disastrous impact on people’s lives that might be expected.

Trump himself has openly stated that the goal is to bring down the Cuban government “by the end of this year”, and asked at the press conference about the indictment whether he was considering a military kidnapping (as carried out against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and First Combatant Cilia Flores), replied only that he “didn’t want to say”. South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, a highly influential (albeit utterly deranged) figure in the Trump camp, went on record after the start of the US-Israel war on Iran saying that “Cuba’s next”.

China’s response

On 21 May, asked by Cuba’s Prensa Latina news agency about the indictment, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters that Beijing “firmly opposes” illegal unilateral sanctions that lack any basis in international law or authorisation from the UN Security Council, and stands “against abusing judicial means and exerting pressure on Cuba under any pretext by external forces”.

The United States, he continued, “should stop wielding the big stick of sanctions and judicial measures against Cuba, and stop threatening Cuba with force at every turn”. China, he affirmed, “firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and national dignity, and opposes external interference”.

To condemn US aggression in such a direct and unequivocal way, in response to a question from a Cuban journalist, in front of the world’s press, is a significant diplomatic statement. It is a direct rebuke of the US government’s illegal and immoral campaign against Cuba, and a clear declaration of solidarity with Cuba’s Revolutionary Government.

This comes just a day after Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin called out “treacherous military strikes against other countries, the hypocritical use of negotiations as cover for preparing such strikes, the assassination of leaders of sovereign states, the destabilisation of the domestic political situation in these states and the provocation of regime change, and the brazen kidnapping of national leaders for trial”.

Such strident denunciations of the wars on Iran and Lebanon, the assassination of Sayyid Ali Khamenei, the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores and the indictment of Raúl Castro represent a shift towards a more assertive tone, and send a clear signal that the US’s criminal and imperial conduct will not be tolerated.

A solidarity built over six decades

China-Cuba relations go back many decades. In September 1960, Cuba became the first country in the Western Hemisphere to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic. Fidel Castro always identified strongly with the Chinese Revolution, describing China in 2004 as “the most promising hope and the best example for all Third World countries”.

Visiting China in 1994, Fidel famously said: “If you want to talk about socialism, let us not forget what socialism achieved in China. At one time it was the land of hunger, poverty, disasters. Today there is none of that. Today China can feed, dress, educate, and care for the health of 1.2 billion people. I think China is a socialist country, and Vietnam is a socialist nation as well. And they insist that they have introduced all the necessary reforms in order to motivate national development and to continue seeking the objectives of socialism.”

Xi Jinping has, in turn, called the China-Cuba relationship “an exemplary case of solidarity and cooperation between socialist countries”. Cuba joined the Belt and Road Initiative in 2018 and the Belt and Road Energy Partnership in 2021.

In recent years, that partnership has become a lifeline. China has committed to building 92 solar parks in Cuba by 2028 – with a combined capacity of roughly 2 gigawatts, equivalent to Cuba’s entire current fossil-fuel generation. More than half are already online. Cuba’s solar share of electricity generation has risen from 5.8 percent to over 20 percent in twelve months – in the words of energy analyst Dave Jones, “one of the most rapid solar revolutions” anywhere in the world.

In January 2026, Xi Jinping personally approved $80 million in emergency financial aid for electrical equipment, alongside a donation of 60,000 tons of rice. Beijing has also delivered 10,000 photovoltaic systems for isolated homes, maternity wards and clinics. Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Hua Xin summarises the relationship as one of “firm support under all circumstances”.

The Trump administration’s indictment of Raúl Castro is a calculated provocation, choreographed to threaten and humiliate at a moment of maximum US pressure. It will not succeed. Cuba’s Revolutionary Government has reaffirmed its “unwavering decision to defend the Homeland and its Socialist Revolution”.

China – the world’s largest economy by purchasing power, its largest manufacturer, and the most important member and partner of the Global South – continues to stand squarely behind Cuba and against hegemonism in all its forms.

Shield of the Americas: The pinnacle of subordination in the silent war against China

While the world’s attention has been focused on Washington’s wars of aggression in the West Asia, the Trump administration has been quietly advancing a parallel offensive in Latin America – one whose real target, as Oscar Rotundo makes clear in this incisive analysis (originally published in English on the website Internationalist 360), is China.

The “Shield of the Americas” summit, hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Kristi Noem at Trump’s Doral golf resort in Miami, brought together twelve compliant Latin American governments and committed them to a Washington-monitored protocol covering security, economic and digital cooperation. As Rotundo shows, this is nothing new: the US has long used regional proxies to advance its interests while making others pay the bill. What’s relatively new is the explicit anti-China dimension.

Every country invited to Miami has significant economic ties with China – ties that are, in most cases, irreplaceable. China is the largest trading partner of Chile; it is Bolivia’s largest creditor; a key investor in Ecuador; and a key destination for much of the region’s commodity exports. The Chancay megaport in Peru, Chinese EVs and green energy investment are all in Washington’s crosshairs.

But as Rotundo argues, the US has nothing comparable to offer. It brings no investment, no infrastructure, no technology transfer – only threats, sanctions and hegemonism. China, by contrast, “builds quality infrastructure and incorporates cutting-edge technology” without demanding political submission.

“The train of the future,” Rotundo concludes, “has left Trump stranded.”

The so-called “Shield of the Americas,” which includes Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago , met at a golf club in Doral, Miami, and was hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Kristi Noem, former Secretary of Homeland Security, who will now serve as special envoy for the “Shield of the Americas.”

The idea behind this meeting is to commit those present to a regional control protocol in security, economy, and digital cooperation, monitored from Washington.

Just as the United States once turned to private contractors such as DynCorp International (now part of Amentum), a US security and aviation contractor for the Pentagon and the State Department, who operated in “Plan Colombia,” it is now turning to the military forces of these countries to act as police officers under its command.

Sending migrants to prisons in El Salvador or Guantanamo in Cuba, the kidnapping of the sitting constitutional president Nicolás Maduro and the deputy Cilia Flores in Caracas, Venezuela, the threats of invasion or overthrow of the legitimate government of Cuba, the constant extortion against Mexico, are all part of the same package to which the cohort of lackeys is added.

The United States, with the same zeal with which it bombs boats under the pretext of drug trafficking, taking the lives of people who cannot be held responsible for any crime; under this cloak of suspicion, it intends to implement a regional security policy with military forces paid for by each State to multiply the protection of its interests in the region.

What is hidden beneath that shield

Supposedly a shield protects, but not always. We could say that the TIAR (Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance) – a mutual defense pact signed in 1947 by countries of America, under the principle that an armed attack against a member state is considered an attack against all, obliging cooperation – was also a shield promoted by the northern hegemon, which, when it came to intervening and discouraging the aggression of an extra-continental force like Great Britain, which since 1833 has illegitimately occupied the Falkland Islands, a territory belonging to Argentina, a member country, did the opposite and joined the aggression by logistically supporting the colonialist force.

Under this shield, “friendly” countries agree to hand over natural resources and sovereignty over these and over the territories where interoceanic passages are located, so that the United States can exercise control over the movement of goods and military resources that can be moved from one place to another, as Donald Trump has just proposed regarding the Strait of Hormuz, which he is “considering taking control of,” a strategic maritime passage through which 20% of the world’s crude oil and also significant quantities of liquefied natural gas (LNG) circulate.

Also, as seen in Ecuador with the presence of Erik Prince, founder of the private military company Blackwater, who in 2025 collaborated with the government of Daniel Noboa to combat organized crime and drug trafficking, participating in operations in Guayaquil and in the training of security forces, it would not be surprising if contractors of this nature were to occupy the ground and the operation of this purported fight against Narcoterrorism, under the auspices of this “strategic protection” in the associated countries.

The unbreakable China-Latin America ties

As the US wages a criminal war on Iran and attempts to tighten its grip on Venezuela, the Trump administration is simultaneously mounting an aggressive campaign to drive China out of Latin America.

Writing in CGTN, Oliver Vargas – a British-Bolivian current affairs commentator based in Beijing – provides a sharp and timely analysis of Washington’s latest bid to reassert colonial dominance over its southern neighbours. At the centre of this effort is the so-called “Shield of the Americas” summit – a gathering in early March of handpicked right-wing governments whose stated purpose is to “push China out” of Latin America. But as Oliver notes, the material forces driving China-Latin America cooperation are “far more powerful than any summit communique”.

The coercive tactics on display are extraordinary. Chile has been threatened with the loss of its US visa waiver programme for merely considering a $500 million undersea cable connecting it to China. Panama’s Supreme Court was bullied into ruling against
CK Hutchison’s port concessions – concessions built on $1.8 billion of investment over nearly three decades. These are not the actions of a confident power competing on merit; they are the desperate manoeuvres of a declining hegemon that, as the author puts it, has “only one card to play”.

The contrast with China could not be starker. Since 2000, China-Latin America trade has expanded approximately 35-fold. Peru’s Chancay megaport has cut shipping times to Asia by nearly two weeks. BYD has built a major EV factory in Brazil. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking at the recent Munich Security Conference, called for all countries to be “equal in terms of rights, opportunities and rules.” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, from the same platform, lamented the decline of “great Western empires”.

China invests in a bright future for Cuba

The Trump administration’s energy siege on Cuba – cutting off oil from Venezuela, threatening punitive tariffs on any country that dares sell fuel to the island – is designed to bring the Cuban Revolution to its knees. What it has produced instead is one of the fastest and most remarkable renewable energy transitions ever achieved by a developing country, carried out in close partnership with socialist China.

Facing blackouts lasting up to 20 hours a day, Cuba has responded not with capitulation but with transformation. In just twelve months, solar power’s share of Cuba’s electricity generation has tripled from 5.8 percent to over 20 percent, with 49 new solar parks now connected to the national grid. Wind energy, electric public transport and decentralised home solar systems are all expanding rapidly. The long-term goal is full energy sovereignty – complete independence from imported fossil fuels by 2050.

This article from Workers World surveys Cuba’s ongoing energy revolution, examining the extraordinary scope of China’s solidarity – from large-scale solar parks to individual kits for rural homes and maternity wards – and what it tells us about the real nature of the
China-Cuba relationship: not a relationship between patron and client, but a partnership between two socialist countries committed to each other’s development and determined to build a world beyond imperial domination.

Relations between the two countries continue to develop in all areas, with China providing emergency humanitarian aid in addition to its support in renewable energy. On 12 March, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla held a phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in which the two highlighted the powerful links of friendship between the two socialist countries and reaffirmed their intention to continuing strengthening bilateral relations.

In a remarkable example of international solidarity, Cuba, with the aid of China, has more than tripled its solar power production — one of the fastest renewable energy transitions ever achieved by a developing country. China helped Cuba develop 49 new solar parks and committed to completing 92 solar parks by 2028. Cuba’s solar power production has jumped from 5.8% in early 2025 to over 20% of its total energy generation.

The goal is for Cuba to reduce reliance on foreign fuel, gain independence from the U.S. blockade and become completely carbon neutral by 2050.

In February of this year, solar energy accounted for 38% of electricity generation, during daytime hours. However, peak demand is from 7-8 p.m., and Cuba is unable to afford battery storage capacity — the most expensive component of a solar energy system. But China is racing to improve the technology, and “progress in recent months has been incredible,” according to Ember, a global energy think tank. Chinese battery exports last year hit a record high. (Washington Post, March 1)

In addition to large solar parks, China sent 10,000 solar panel kit systems for individual homes and public buildings; 5,000 systems for critical facilities, including maternity homes, nursing homes, emergency rooms and municipal radio stations; and 5,000 kits specifically for rural and “isolated” homes that are not connected to the national grid.

“If you install a 2kW system for these people there, so they can have a refrigerator, a fan, a television, their lives change completely, and then we contribute to preventing these people from migrating from their communities,” said Elena Maidelín Ortiz Fernández, head of the Electric Union’s installation project. (bellyofthebeastcuba.com, March 6)

Cuba is also boosting renewable energy production by restoring thermal generation capacity, production of crude oil and petroleum gas and increasing their natural gas supply. China has provided Cuba with wind turbines and helped with their installation and maintenance since 2018.

Xinhua News Agency reported that Cuba has four small experimental wind farms with a fifth on the way. They have generated enough energy to save Cuba 29,630 tons of petroleum oil and about 96,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) from being released into the atmosphere.

Socialist planning in energy technology

As an example of socialist planning, data is being gathered from Cuba’s experimental wind farms to determine which technology is the most feasible for each region in Cuba. Cuba’s largest wind farm being completed in La Tunas will contribute 1% of total energy production by 2028 and save 40,000 tons of fossil fuels. Cuba also plans on building another 12 wind farms along the northern central and eastern coasts.

In 2005, China sent the first electric bus to Havana. It was manufactured by Yutong, a leading global producer of electric buses. Between 2015 and 2017, China sent Cuba a fleet of electric vehicles. Since 2021, after escalating fuel shortages imposed by the U.S. blockade, Cuba increased the imports of Chinese electric scooters, tricycles and cars.

China continues to support Cuban public transport by supplying parts, components and equipment to rehabilitate the Yutong bus fleet. In a joint venture, Havana’s Caribbean Electric Vehicles (VEDCA) is assembling thousands of Chinese parts into Cuban EVs.

Dave Jones, an energy analyst with Ember, said that Cuba is in the middle of one of the most rapid solar revolutions anywhere and ahead of most countries, including the U.S., in the share of electricity generated by sun power.

Cuba’s goal is to have 26% to 37% renewable energy generation by 2030-2035. Cuban Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy said that with China’s help, the project represents “a joint commitment to energy sovereignty.” (socialistchina.org, Feb. 25)

China’s solidarity gives Nicaragua a fleet of thousands of buses

Co-President of the Republic of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega has said that thanks to the solidarity extended by China, the Russian Federation and Mexico, his country now has a fleet of 4,610 buses and minibuses.

He was speaking at a ceremony held on February 16, which this year was the day before the start of the Chinese New Year, at the Avenue Bolivar to Chávez, where the latest consignment of 180 Chinese Yutong minibuses was handed over to the Nicaraguan side.

Ortega noted that prior to the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between his country and China, support had been received from Russia and Mexico. However, the great leap came in in 2023, when China sent 500 Yutong buses, in 2024 a thousand Yutong buses and minibuses, in 2025, 500 Yutong buses and minibuses, and in 2025, 100 Asia Star buses, and in 2026, 180 minibuses.

He asked Chinese Ambassador Qu Yuhui to, “convey to President Xi Jinping and the heroic people of the People’s Republic of China, our affection, our gratitude for unconditional generosity, without any conditions. That should be the behaviour of humanity, that we treat each other as brothers… Honest young people are those who act as the people of the People’s Republic of China acts.” (Photos of the ceremony indicate that pride of place was given to members of the Sandinista Youth.)

Noting the Chinese New Year, the Nicaraguan leader said: “How much joy that, on these dates of the Year of the Horse, of the Horse that trots around the world, giving affection, giving love, giving well-being, because the People’s Republic of China is an example of what peace is… When there is peace we are brothers. We are full of gratitude to the glorious people of the People’s Republic of China, to President Xi Jinping, to the Party. We have always been brother parties.”

For his part, Chinese Ambassador Qu Yuhui pointed out that this was a very special day because the Chinese people celebrate the Spring Festival, “and for me it has also been an unforgettable day, because I attended the ceremony for the delivery of social housing and this afternoon I am at this important event for the delivery of 180 minibuses for the comrades of Nicaragua. There is no better way to celebrate this important date for us, together with our brothers and sisters in Nicaragua, which is more evidence of the brotherhood, friendship, and cooperation between China and Nicaragua.”

The below article was originally published in Spanish by Radio La Primerisima and has been machine translated.

The Co-President of the Republic Daniel Ortega highlighted this Monday that Nicaragua has a fleet of 4,610 buses and minibuses, thanks to the twinning of countries such as the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China.

During the delivery ceremony of 180 Chinese Yutong brand minibuses on Bolívar Avenue to Chávez, the Co-President asked himself, in 1990, when the Yankees came to government, did they give away any buses? did they bring some fleets of buses? Zero.

In that sense, he indicated that the transporters, with their own efforts, with their sweat, with their blood, but with energy, with courage, as best they could, collected their money to buy used buses.

He explained that in that period the transporters acquired 300 used buses, then in the period of Dr. Arnoldo Alemán (1997-2002), the transporters with their own efforts managed to buy 400 used buses.

The US is pursuing a global Monroe Doctrine

The following article is based on a presentation given by Friends of Socialist China co-editor Carlos Martinez at the Latin America Adelante Conference in London on 7 February 2026. The presentation was part of a session on ‘Latin America, the New Cold War and the Rising Global South’, which was also addressed by Sophie Bold (CND General Secretary), Roger McKenzie (Morning Star International Editor) and Fiona Sim (Co-founder, Black Liberation Alliance). The session was chaired by Carole Regan of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign.

Carlos’s presentation focused on the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy and its implications for Latin America, as well as its connection to the US’s longstanding global strategy of encirclement and containment against China. Carlos concludes:

The ruling class is pushing an agenda that is increasingly unpopular and untenable — an agenda of permanent war, economic decline and ecological destruction. We need to push our own agenda: one of peace, multilateralism, solidarity, and the broadest possible global cooperation to confront the existential threats facing humanity.

The Trump administration’s National Security Strategy (NSS), released in late November 2025, has been the subject of widespread comment and a diverse array of interpretations. For those of us concerned with questions of peace, sovereignty and international justice, its most striking feature is its explicit reassertion of the Monroe Doctrine, shifting the focus of US military strategy towards “defending our hemisphere”, with more troops, bases and military operations in the Americas.

US hegemony over the Western Hemisphere is of course nothing new. Since the Monroe Doctrine was first promulgated in 1823, the United States has treated Latin America and the Caribbean as its backyard, overthrowing governments, installing dictatorships, funding death squads and imposing economic subjugation as a matter of routine. But, at least in the post-WW2 era, previous administrations have at least maintained some pretence of respect for international law and the sovereignty of other nations. The NSS does away with any such niceties, declaring that “the United States will reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere” and “deny non-Hemispheric competitors the ability to position forces or other threatening capabilities, or to own or control strategically vital assets, in our Hemisphere.”

Coercive diplomacy is diplomacy of muscle

In the article below, Professor Jiang Shixue argues that “coercive diplomacy” best characterises the foreign policy of the United States. He defines coercive diplomacy as the use of diplomatic language backed by military or economic pressure to force other countries into submission. Jiang writes that the United States, as the world’s sole superpower, routinely applies such tactics not only against rivals but even against allies.

As an expert in Latin American politics, Professor Jiang cites as examples of coercive diplomacy the US’s criminal decades-long blockade on Cuba, the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and the recent developments in Panama, which, under pressure from the US, has cancelled a Hong Kong company’s canal port concession and withdrawn from the China-led Belt and Road Initiative.

Jiang contrasts this approach with China’s concept of building a “community of shared future for mankind”, grounded in principles of non-interference and mutual respect. The article concludes that global stability requires abandoning coercive diplomacy in favour of cooperation and multilateralism.

Jiang Shixue is Senior Research Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He is also Distinguished Professor at Shanghai University, Macau University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou Normal University, and Sichuan International Studies University. Professor Jiang spoke on the subject of How to understand China’s relations with Latin America at our 2022 webinar 21st Century Socialism: China and Latin America on the Frontline alongside former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and a number of other prominent speakers.

If one phrase can be applied to summarize the characteristics of the US’s foreign policy, it should be “coercive diplomacy”.

What is coercive diplomacy? Different people have different definitions. But the basic meaning is simple: It is a type of diplomacy plus muscle. In other words, coercive diplomacy cloaks itself in diplomatic garb and relies on one’s military or economic power to force other countries to submit.

As the world’s sole superpower, the United States often engages in coercive diplomacy against any country at any time. The methods of coercion are varied and numerous. Even countries maintaining close relations with the U.S. sometimes become targets of its coercive diplomacy. For instance, on April 25, 2021, the Danish newspaper Politiken revealed that the U.S. Embassy in Denmark had contacted the paper, demanding it prove it did not use technical equipment such as routers or modems provided by Chinese companies including Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hikvision, and Dahua Technology. Otherwise, the embassy might cancel its subscription. This shows that even subscribing to a newspaper can become leverage for U.S. coercive diplomacy.

China and Uruguay pledge closer bilateral and multilateral cooperation

President Yamandú Orsi of Uruguay recently paid a one-week state visit to China, becoming the first leader from Latin America and the Caribbean to do so in 2026. The visit coincided with the 38^th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations and with Uruguay’s assumption of the rotating chair of the Group of 77 and China, an economic grouping of developing countries, as well as in the wake of the brazen US kidnapping of the Venezuelan president and his wife at the beginning of the year.

President Xi Jinping met his Uruguayan counterpart on the morning of February 3.

Xi said that despite long distance between the two countries, China and Uruguay share similar ideals and profound friendship. On this very day 38 years ago, China and Uruguay established diplomatic relations. Thirty-eight years on, no matter how the international situation evolves, China and Uruguay have always engaged with each other in the spirit of mutual respect and mutual benefit. Under the new circumstances, the two countries should carry forward past traditions, deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership, and let the tree of China-Uruguay friendship continue to grow and flourish.

The two sides should strengthen the alignment of development strategies, deepen cooperation in areas such as economy and trade, finance, agriculture and animal husbandry, infrastructure construction, and information and communications technology, tap into the cooperation potential in emerging sectors such as green development, digital economy, artificial intelligence, and clean energy, and promote the transformation and upgrading of economic growth. The Chinese and Uruguayan people share a natural bond of affinity. The two sides should continue to deepen exchanges in areas such as culture, education, sports, and media and at the sub-national level, facilitate cross-border travel, and strengthen people-to-people connectivity.

Turning to the regional and international situation, President Xi Jinping noted that the world is undergoing changes unseen in a century, the international situation is volatile and turbulent, and unilateral bullying practices are growing more rampant. China supports Uruguay in assuming the rotating chair of the Group of 77 and China, and stands ready to work with Uruguay to strengthen solidarity and cooperation across the Global South, jointly promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalisation, move forward together in pursuit of common development, and make greater contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for humanity. China attaches high importance to its relations with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), supports LAC countries in safeguarding their sovereignty, security and development interests, and supports Uruguay in assuming the rotating chair of both the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR). China stands ready to work with Uruguay and other regional countries to further deepen and substantiate the joint initiative of building a China-LAC community with a shared future.

President Yamandú Orsi said that China is an important cooperation partner of Uruguay and has provided selfless assistance for Uruguay’s economic and social development. Growing relations with China is now Uruguay’s state policy, gaining unanimous support from all political parties and across the society. The two sides should strengthen the alignment of development strategies, deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, science and technology, poverty alleviation, green economy, and digital economy, and promote people-to-people exchanges in education, sports, tourism, and other fields in order to inject stronger momentum into Uruguay-China relations and deliver greater benefits to the two peoples. Uruguay commends the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity proposed by President Xi Jinping. Facing the challenging international and regional situations, Uruguay stands ready to work with China to promote respect for the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, uphold multilateralism, safeguard the international trading system, further advance LAC-China relations, and defend the common interests of the Global South.

Lula and Xi consult on bilateral ties and regional situation

Chinese President Xi Jinping held an important telephone conversation with his Brazilian counterpart President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on January 23.

President Xi noted that in 2024, he and President Lula jointly announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a China-Brazil community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet. For more than one year since then, the two countries have gained strong momentum in building a community with a shared future and made solid progress in synergising development strategies, thus setting an example of solidarity and cooperation between Global South countries.

The Chinese leader stressed that facing the turbulent international landscape, China and Brazil, as important members of the Global South, are constructive forces for upholding world peace and stability and reforming and improving global governance. China and Brazil should firmly stand on the right side of history, better champion the common interests of both their countries along with the Global South, and jointly uphold the central position of the United Nations and international fairness and justice. China will always be a good friend and good partner of Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries and continue promoting a China-LAC community with a shared future.

President Lula said that Brazil will work with China to promote greater development of bilateral and LAC-China relations. Brazil and China are important forces in upholding multilateralism and free trade. Given the worrying international situation, Brazil is willing to collaborate closely with China to defend the authority of the United Nations, strengthen BRICS cooperation, and safeguard regional and world peace and stability.

On one level, this call may be understood as part of the normal, close and friendly relationship between the two countries. However, with the ever more aggressive behaviour of US imperialism in the western hemisphere, presently dubbed the ‘Donroe Doctrine’ by some, which saw 2026 begin with the flagrant kidnapping of the Venezuelan President and First Lady, growing threats to numerous other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Cuba, Colombia and Mexico, and undisguised attempts to undermine and destroy the mutually beneficial and friendly relations between China and countries in the region, the call doubtless acquires additional significance and urgency.

The following article was originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

On the morning of January 23, 2026, President Xi Jinping spoke with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on the phone.

President Xi noted that in 2024, President Lula and I jointly announced the elevation of the bilateral relationship to a China-Brazil community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet. For more than one year since then, the two countries have gained strong momentum in building a community with a shared future and made solid progress in synergizing development strategies, thus setting an example of solidarity and cooperation between Global South countries. This year marks the beginning of China’s 15th Five-Year Plan. China will pursue high-quality development through high-standard opening up and provide more opportunities for cooperation with Brazil. China is ready to work with Brazil to comprehensively advance mutually beneficial cooperation across the board, and promote greater development and usher in a brighter future of China-Brazil relations.

China delivers emergency rice aid to Cuba

A Chinese emergency aid program has delivered its first shipment of rice to Cuba, which is facing shortages as a result of the tightening US blockade on the island.

Under the new program, China will send 30,000 tons of rice. The first shipment was handed over on Monday 19 January.

At the handover ceremony – attended by Vice Prime Minister Oscar Perez-Oliva Fraga, Minister of Domestic Trade Betsy Díaz Velázquez, Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Déborah Rivas Saavedra and Chinese Ambassador to Cuba Hua Xin, among others – Ambassador Hua stated that “each grain of rice represents the unbreakable commitment of the Chinese people” to the island.

He continued:

We’re convinced that, with the joint effort of Cuba and China, no blockade will be able to turn off the light of hope, no difficulty will be able to block the path of progress.

Hua Xin added that China’s solidarity with Cuba “not only embodies the deep bonds of special friendship between both nations, but also demonstrates the unwavering commitment to remain united even in difficult times”.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez commented on X that the aid “is a sign of the close brotherhood and historical ties of friendship and solidarity that unite both nations”.

Daniel Lambert, manager of the Irish hip-hop group Kneecap, made an apposite comment on social media: “Due to crippling sanctions the USA has illegally placed on Cuba for 64 years its population struggles to now survive. Yesterday China sent 30,000 tons of rice to assist the Cuban people. As the US starves its neighbour a nation across the world tries to assist.”

We publish below reports from Xinhua Spanish and Prensa Latina. The Xinhua report has been translated by us.

China delivers first batch of emergency food aid to Cuba

HAVANA, Jan 19 (Xinhua) — On Monday, Cuba officially received the first batch of a donation of 30,000 tons of rice from China, sent as emergency aid to support efforts aimed at guaranteeing the food supply of the population of the Caribbean island.

At the handover ceremony, held at the Ministry of Domestic Trade in Havana, Cuban Deputy Prime Minister and Head of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Óscar Pérez-Oliva, thanked China for the donation, describing it as “a concrete expression of China’s exemplary, unconditional and selfless cooperation with Cuba”.

Nicaragua inaugurates major Chinese-invested projects

Nicaragua has recently inaugurated two major industrial projects, built with investment and support from China, that will make a substantial contribution to the country’s industrial development and modernisation.

On December 23, 2025, Presidential Adviser Laureano Ortega Murillo inaugurated the American Recycling Steel and Materials Processing Plant alongside Nicaraguan and Chinese officials. This steel plant is considered the most sophisticated and largest in all of Central America. US$ 60 million were invested in its construction and it will directly create 500 jobs.

Ortega said that, with the commissioning of this plant, Nicaragua and the Central American region will have steel products for construction, made under the highest standards of quality and sustainability.

“Within the framework of our brotherhood, in that brotherhood cemented between the Communist Party of China and the Sandinista National Liberation Front, we take on the task of continuing to promote and facilitate the investments of our Chinese brothers in Nicaragua and from Nicaragua, to promote and project this relationship for all of Central America and also framed in compliance with adherence to all the initiatives that President Xi Jinping has proposed: Belt and Road, Global Development, Global Security, Global Governance Initiative and all cooperation programs with Latin America; here we are working with our brothers in the People’s Republic of China for the development of Nicaragua and mutual benefit,” he said.

Then, on January 14 2026, a further plant that will manufacture PVC-based materials, galvanised steel sheets and related products which will be used for construction in the country as well as for export, was also opened by Laureano Ortega Murillo.

Suyen Ang, General Manager of L&L Contemporary Exteriors said: “We are here to contribute to the development of Nicaragua and the generation of employment and strengthening the national industry. Nicaragua is an attractive country for investment and is favourable for doing business.”

The following articles were originally published by La Gente – Radio La Primerísima.

Largest steel plant inaugurated in Central America

December 23 (Radio La Primerísima) – A steel plant, considered the most sophisticated and largest in all of Central America, was inaugurated on Tuesday morning by officials of the Sandinista Government and the People’s Republic of China.

The American Recycling Materials Recycling and Processing Steel Plant is located on the Masaya–Tipitapa highway, kilometer 29, in the Guanacastillo region.

60 million dollars were invested in the construction of the plant.

During the opening ceremony, Laureano Ortega Murillo, presidential advisor for the Promotion of Investment, Trade and Cooperation, explained that the project is located on a 150 thousand square meter plot of land, of which 70 thousand square meters correspond to the recycling plant.

Venezuela and China reaffirm mutual solidarity

Venezuela and China have taken several opportunities to reaffirm their continued mutual support and solidarity following the brigandish US aggression which saw the kidnap of President Maduro and his wife, the murder of numerous Venezuelans and Cuban internationalists, and repeated hegemonic acts and utterances by the US, seeking, among other things, to estrange Venezuela from its closest friends, including China, Cuba and Russia.

On January 9, Acting President Delcy Rodriguez reported that she had met the previous day with Chinese Ambassador Lan Hu and expressed gratitude to China for condemning the US aggression against Venezuela and the seizure of the country’s legitimate President and First Lady. She noted that Caracas values China’s firm position in strongly denouncing the grave violations of international law and Venezuelan sovereignty.

For her part, responding to Rodriguez’s comments on social media, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that China attaches importance to its relations with Venezuela and maintains sound communication and cooperation with the Venezuelan government.

Also on January 8, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil once again expressed his gratitude to China for its support for Venezuela in social media posts. Posting on X, he said that: “We thank China for its firm position in rejecting the violation of international law and of Venezuela’s sovereignty. The Venezuelan people reaffirm their commitment to political, territorial sovereignty and over their natural resources.”

He also posted a video of Mao Ning responding to questions on Venezuela and stated on Telegram that: “Venezuela reaffirms its commitment to deepening trade and economic agreements with the People’s Republic of China.”

In a previous posting on X, Gil stated that: “We particularly value its [China’s] warning that no country can place its norms and foreign policies above the international provisions that govern and protect all our peoples. Likewise, we extend our gratitude for China’s willingness to collaborate with the Latin American and Caribbean region in preserving the status of peace zone.”

The following article was originally published by Global Times.

Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodriguez on Thursday expressed gratitude to China for condemning the US aggression against Venezuela and the seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, according to a post Rodriguez published on Instagram.

Community or Command: China, the American Pole, and the battle for Latin America

The following article from Weaponized Information, published in late December 2025, frames the current period as a pivotal moment for Latin America and the Caribbean, with competing visions of how the region fits into broader geopolitical shifts.

“Within weeks of each other, two texts appeared that quietly announced Latin America and the Caribbean as a decisive front in the struggle over the next world order. China released its third Policy Paper on Latin America and the Caribbean, framing the present as a moment of ‘changes unseen in a century’, with the Global South rising in influence while unilateral coercion destabilises peace and development. At nearly the same time, the Trump administration issued its National Security Strategy, declaring that American power had been ‘restored’, borders militarised, tariffs weaponised, and the Western Hemisphere re-centred as a strategic priority under an unapologetic America First doctrine. These are not parallel statements. They are opposing blueprints.”

China’s policy paper presents the region as an active political subject and an essential force within the rising Global South. It emphasises integration through trade, infrastructure, industrial cooperation, technology transfer, cultural exchange, regional institution-building, local-currency settlement, and engagement via multilateral bodies such as CELAC. In China’s vision, sovereignty is strengthened through diversified partnerships that reduce exposure to US financial vetoes, sanctions and conditional lending.

The Trump administration’s NSS, by contrast, is framed in terms of the restoration and enforcement of US hegemony. It asserts that US power has been “restored” under an unapologetic America First doctrine, militarising borders, weaponising tariffs and engaging in direct military aggression. Such a strategy does not treat Latin America and the Caribbean as a collective political subject at all, but as a managed perimeter and strategic rear base, echoing the Monroe Doctrine without any liberal euphemism. Infrastructure, ports, supply chains, payment systems and information spaces are reclassified as assets to be locked down or insulated from “non-hemispheric competitors”. Security becomes the alibi for expanded coercive reach.

The article highlights that in the lived history of the Americas, “security” has often meant security for capital and compliant oligarchies, enforced through coups, lawfare and counterinsurgency against popular movements.

When China speaks of development without political conditions, it challenges the architecture that has historically converted economic dependency into political obedience. The US response to China’s role is to attempt to narrow options for countries of the region, via the threat of tariffs, sanctions, statecraft, destabilisation, lawfare and – as we are currently witnessing in Venezuela – direct military aggression and the blatant violation of the most basic principles of international law.

The author concludes that the difference between the US and Chinese approach is not about democracy versus authoritarianism, but community versus command. Multipolar integration introduces something disruptive the region has long been denied: the normalisation of choice. The intensity of the US’s reaction signals a historic shift – autonomy is no longer unthinkable. The hemisphere now faces a clear struggle over whether it remains frozen in managed dependency or expands sovereignty through cooperation and plural development paths.

The Hemisphere at the Breaking Point

There are moments when states stop improvising and start publishing doctrine. Not press statements, not campaign slogans, but documents meant to harden intentions into policy and turn instinct into structure. Late 2025 was one of those moments. Within weeks of each other, two texts appeared that quietly announced Latin America and the Caribbean as a decisive front in the struggle over the next world order. China released its third Policy Paper on Latin America and the Caribbean, framing the present as a moment of “changes unseen in a century,” with the Global South rising in influence while unilateral coercion destabilizes peace and development. At nearly the same time, the Trump administration issued its National Security Strategy, declaring that American power had been “restored,” borders militarized, tariffs weaponized, and the Western Hemisphere re-centered as a strategic priority under an unapologetic America First doctrine. These are not parallel statements. They are opposing blueprints.

China at UN: Venezuela has every right to defend its sovereignty and national dignity

China has again declared its solidarity with Venezuela and its strong condemnation of the United States’ flagrant and brigandish acts of aggression, including the illegal kidnapping of the country’s President and First Lady.

Speaking at an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council on January 5, requested by Colombia and supported by China, Russia and other countries, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. Sun Lei said that:

“On January 3, the United States blatantly launched large-scale military strikes against Venezuela, forcibly seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, and took them out of the country. It claimed that it would ‘run’ Venezuela and even did not rule out launching a second round of military operations on an even larger scale. China is deeply shocked by and strongly condemns the unilateral, illegal, and bullying acts by the United States.”

Noting that the council had already previously convened two emergency meetings in connection with the US sanctions, blockade, and threats of force against Venezuela, he said that, “the US has disregarded the grave concerns of the international community, wantonly trampled upon Venezuela’s sovereignty, security, and legitimate rights and interests, and seriously violated the principles of sovereign equality, non-interference in internal affairs, peaceful settlement of international disputes, and the prohibition of the use of force in international relations. These principles constitute the fundamental tenets of the UN Charter and form the cornerstone of maintaining international peace and security. The US has placed its own power above multilateralism and military actions above diplomatic efforts, posing a grave threat to peace and security in Latin America and the Caribbean and even internationally. China firmly opposes this, and the international community has also expressed widespread grave concerns and strong condemnation.”