Category: Latin America

Xi Jinping: CELAC has remained committed to independence, self-reliance and strength through unity

The ninth summit meeting of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was held in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras, the country holding the organisation’s rotating presidency, on April 9, 2025.

Sending greetings to the summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping noted that the world today is undergoing accelerated changes unseen in a century and that the Global South, including China as well as Latin American and Caribbean countries, is growing with a stronger momentum. CELAC has remained committed to independence, self-reliance and strength through unity, playing an important role in safeguarding regional peace and stability, promoting development and cooperation, and advancing regional integration. He sincerely wished the countries and peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean greater achievements on the path to development and revitalisation, so as to make greater contributions to enhancing the solidarity and cooperation of the Global South.

Xi added that this year, China will host the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC Forum in Beijing, and all CELAC member states are welcome to attend the meeting in China to discuss ways to foster development and promote cooperation and jointly contribute wisdom and strength to addressing global challenges, advancing global governance reform and safeguarding world peace and stability. [Xi’s reference to all member states is significant as, of the 12 states yet to establish diplomatic relations with China and still maintaining so-called “diplomatic relations” with the authorities on Taiwan island, seven are in the region, namely Belize, Guatemala, Haiti, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.]

The summit concluded with the adoption of the Declaration of Tegucigalpa, which was signed by 30 of the 33 member states. The right-wing regimes of Argentina and Paraguay refused to sign, reflecting their close alignment with US imperialism, while, for its part, Nicaragua declined to sign, considering it inappropriate that the document did not explicitly defend Cuba and Venezuela or clearly condemn the genocide of the Palestinian people.

Among the key points in the declaration are:

  • Highlighting Latin America and the Caribbean as “a Zone of Peace” adhering to the principles of the UN Charter, international law, democracy, multilateralism, human rights, self-determination of countries, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
  • Rejecting unilateral coercive measures, contrary to international law, including those of a commercial nature.
  • Congratulating Honduras for its role at the head of CELAC and handing over the rotating presidency to Colombia for the next year.

The full text may be found here.

In speeches at the summit, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said: “Latin America and the Caribbean are currently facing one of the most critical moments in their history. We have come a long way to consolidate our ideals of emancipation; we have abolished slavery, and we have overcome military dictatorships. Now, our autonomy is once again at stake. The moment demands that we put our differences aside. Attempts to restore old hegemonies are looming over the region. History teaches us that trade wars have no winners.”

Incoming Chair of CELAC and President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called on the member countries to strengthen regional unity in the face of the new US tariff policy, which will hit the region’s exports hard.

President of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel observed: “The gravity of this hour of multiplied threats demands the multiplication of unitary forces. Only unity can save us. Let us not delay any longer the integration dreamed and fought for, since Bolivar until today, by the bravest sons and daughters of Our America.”

And President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum said: “I invite you to convene a Summit for the Economic Well-being of Latin America and the Caribbean to make greater regional integration a reality based on shared prosperity and respect for our sovereignties… Today more than ever is a good time to recognise that Latin America and the Caribbean require unity and solidarity among its governments and peoples, to strengthen greater regional integration, always within the framework of mutual respect and the observance of sovereignty and independence.”

Agência Brasil subsequently reported that May 12-13 were agreed as the dates for the ministerial meeting in China and that President Lula would attend. The agency further reported that Lula will travel on to China after attending the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Soviet Union’s great victory over Nazi Germany at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, to be held in Moscow on May 9. It added:

“Lula’s trip to China will mark his second official visit during his third term. His first visit occurred in April 2023, followed by a reciprocal state visit from Xi Jinping in November of the same year, after the G20 Summit in Brazil. The two leaders also met again in 2023 at the BRICS Summit in South Africa.”

The following articles were originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry and by Peoples Dispatch and Agência Brasil.

Xi Jinping Sends Congratulatory Letter to the 9th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the CELAC

On April 9, 2025, the 9th summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was held in Honduras, the country holding the rotating presidency. President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the summit.

Xi Jinping noted that the world today is undergoing accelerated changes unseen in a century and that the Global South, including China as well as Latin American and Caribbean countries, is growing with a stronger momentum. CELAC has remained committed to independence, self-reliance and strength through unity, playing an important role in safeguarding regional peace and stability, promoting development and cooperation, and advancing regional integration. Xi Jinping sincerely wishes the countries and people of Latin America and the Caribbean greater achievements on the path to development and revitalization, so as to make greater contributions to enhancing the solidarity and cooperation of the Global South.

Xi Jinping stressed that the relations between China and Latin American and Caribbean states (LAC) have withstood the test of changes in the international landscape and entered a new stage marked by equality, mutual benefit, innovation, openness and tangible benefits for the people. The two sides have continuously deepened political mutual trust, expanded practical cooperation, and enhanced people-to-people exchanges, delivering benefits to the people of both sides and setting an example for South-South cooperation. China is willing to work with countries in the region to make new progress in building a China-LAC community with a shared future. This year, China will host the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC Forum in Beijing, and all CELAC member states are welcome to attend the meeting in China to discuss ways to foster development and promote cooperation, and jointly contribute wisdom and strength to addressing global challenges, advancing global governance reform and safeguarding world peace and stability.

In the face of new geopolitical challenges, CELAC proposes greater unity

After several months of preparation and three days of intense meetings at the highest diplomatic level, the IX Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), which brings together the 33 countries of the region, concluded in Tegucigalpa, Honduras on April 9.

The high-level meeting concluded with a joint agreement called the Declaration of Tegucigalpa, which was signed by 30 of the 33 member states. Argentina and Paraguay refused to sign the agreement, in line with the foreign policy of the ultra-right-wing Javier Milei and the right-wing Santiago Peña, who reject any attempt at regional unity outside the United States. 

For its part, Nicaragua opposed the signing of the document because it considered it inappropriate that it does not support the defense of Cuba and Venezuela, as well as a clear condemnation of the Palestinian genocide.

The key points of the Declaration of Tegucigalpa

 Among the most important points of the agreement are:

  • Committing to strengthening CELAC as a method for political concentration among member countries.
  • Highlighting Latin America and the Caribbean as “a Zone of Peace” adhering to the principles of the UN Charter, International Law, democracy, multilateralism, human rights, self-determination of countries, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
  • Rejecting unilateral coercive measures, contrary to international law, including those of a commercial nature.
  • To join efforts toward ensuring that someone from Latin America and the Caribbean becomes the next Secretary General of the UN.
  • Congratulating Honduras for its management at the head of CELAC and hand over the Presidency pro tempore of the organization to Colombia for one year to carry out projects related to “energy (energy transition and interconnection); human mobility; health and health self-sufficiency; environment and climate change; Indigenous peoples and Afro-descendants; science, technology and innovation; connectivity and infrastructure; strengthening of trade and investment; transnational organized crime; education; gender equality; among others.”
  • Supporting Haiti and endorsing the support of each of the countries, according to their capacities to “reestablish an environment of human security” that allows for the normalization ‘“Of the political, economic, and social situation, with a comprehensive development approach.”

The ghost of Trump at the meeting

Undoubtedly, the recent tariff and immigration measures of Donald Trump’s administration marked a good part of the concerns of the presidents, foreign ministers, and prime ministers who attended Tegucigalpa. In a way, CELAC was created to find agreements outside Washington’s direct influence over the region. However, the plurality of political positions, in addition to external political influences in Latin America and the Caribbean, have not allowed the consolidation of a long-term international agenda.

Lula: “Only unity will prevent us from becoming pawns again”

However, despite the differences in political positions that often prevent reaching major agreements, according to the President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the creation of CELAC “Is the most important decision of the region in 500 years… If we remain separated, the Latin American and Caribbean communities run the risk of returning to the condition of a zone of influence in a new division of the globe between superpowers. Latin America and the Caribbean must redefine their place in the emerging global order. We need a structured program of action.”

Lula also indirectly recalled that the unity of the region is imperative at a time when geopolitics is beginning to redefine itself, among other things, due to the decisions of the Trump administration: “Latin America and the Caribbean are currently facing one of the most critical moments in their history. We have come a long way to consolidate our ideals of emancipation; we have abolished slavery, and we have overcome military dictatorships. Now, our autonomy is once again at stake. The moment demands that we put our differences aside. Attempts to restore old hegemonies are looming over the region. History teaches us that trade wars have no winners.”

Petro: “The agenda of solitude has only two names – migration and blockade”

For his part, the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called on the countries to strengthen regional unity in the face of the new US tariff policy, which will hit the region’s exports hard. He also stressed that there are currently two ways of resolving conflicts at the international level: multilateralism (referred to in the final agreement) and “solitude.” 

“Today, there is a certain tendency for us to kill each other and live a century of solitude…This is done to preserve a power that no longer does humanity any good…The agenda of solitude has only two names: migration and blockade. The aid agenda is more complex and difficult, but it is much more interesting for all of us present here, representatives of our nations.”

On Trump’s migration policy and the arrival of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador, Petro said: “The loneliness agenda proposes to treat the migrant as a criminal. Migrants should not arrive in chains to our land, because if we accept a single migrant in chains, not only do we go back to the time of Torrijos, but we go back to the time when the first boatloads of Africans arrived in chains.”

Díaz-Canel: “Only unity can save us”

For his part, the President of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, said about the IX Summit of CELAC, “The gravity of this hour of multiplied threats demands the multiplication of unitary forces. Only unity can save us. Let us not delay any longer the integration dreamed and fought for, since Bolivar until today, by the bravest sons and daughters of Our America.”

Sheinbaum calls for an economic summit: “Shared prosperity and sovereignty”

Regarding the urgency of finding economic alternatives in the face of an increasingly complex world, the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, called for a meeting to discuss possible joint strategies: “I invite you to CELAC to convene a Summit for the Economic Well-being of Latin America and the Caribbean to make greater regional integration a reality based on shared prosperity and respect for our sovereignties… Today more than ever is a good time to recognize that Latin America and the Caribbean require unity and solidarity among its governments and peoples, to strengthen greater regional integration, always within the framework of mutual respect and the observance of sovereignty and independence.”

Lula to visit China in May for another meeting with Xi Jinping

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will visit China again in May for another meeting with President Xi Jinping. The trip will take place during the China–CELAC Summit, which brings together China and the countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. The dates—May 12 and 13—were agreed upon during the 9th CELAC Summit, held in Honduras and attended by Lula.

The trip was confirmed by the Planalto presidential palace and is expected to follow the president’s visit to Russia.

At the invitation of President Vladimir Putin, Lula will attend celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. The event—Russia’s most important national holiday—takes place on May 9 and features a grand civic-military parade in Moscow.

International trade

The meeting between Lula and Xi Jinping will occur amid the escalation of the trade war between the United States and China, the world’s two largest economies. The imposition of reciprocal tariffs, initiated by US President Donald Trump, has led to successive stock market turbulence and heightened concerns about a potential global recession.

Lula’s trip to China will mark his second official visit during his third term. His first visit occurred in April 2023, followed by a reciprocal state visit from Xi Jinping in November of the same year, after the G20 Summit in Brazil. The two leaders also met again in 2023 at the BRICS Summit in South Africa.

Daniel Ortega: The continuing Chinese Revolution brings peace, wellbeing and solidarity

We are pleased to republish this article from the Tortilla con Sal website, consisting of the speeches given on March 8, International Women’s Day, at the latest ceremony to mark the handover of buses as part of the comradely support of the People’s Republic of China to the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua.

Speaking first, Santi Zhou, representative of the Yutong Company, the bus manufacturer, said:

“Since the start of our collaboration, we have introduced several batches of buses, with a total of 2,000 units in Nicaragua. Yutong accompanies Nicaraguans in their development.

“We thank Compañero Comandante Daniel Ortega and Compañera Rosario Murillo for the opportunity to contribute to the modernisation of Nicaraguan public transport, which is now not only present in Managua… but also expanding to other territories.

“It gives us pride to strengthen the bonds of friendship between our peoples, expanding new horizons for the growth of transport and the important tourism industry, promoting access to the beautiful landscapes of Bluefields and Bilwi… Our team is committed, living and working here, to provide the greatest possible support to the Nicaraguan people.”

Fátima del Carmen German, a transport worker, said: “On this special day, March 8th when we celebrate this important date, we commemorate the struggle that women waged for equal rights; and likewise, we celebrate the strength, resilience and passion of every woman… On behalf of all these strong, brave, hardworking and empowered women, we reiterate our gratitude to our good government and our brothers and sisters in China for having confidence in us.”

China’s Ambassador to Nicaragua Chen Xi noted that this was the fifth time that he has participated in the handover of Chinese vehicles to Nicaragua.

“I wanted to salute the Nicaraguan people for the recent publication of the Constitution of the Republic of Nicaragua, unanimously approved by the Legislators of the National Assembly of Nicaragua. A revolutionary and democratic constitution, a constitution that strengthens and further consolidates the rights of education, health, security, wellbeing and all the rights that assist the honourable Nicaraguan people.

“I also want to salute Co-President Daniel Ortega, Co-President Rosario Murillo, for their great responsibility and commitment, their determination to lead the Nicaraguan people to a brighter future.

“Of course, I also cannot fail to salute you, the Nicaraguan transport workers, for the successes you have been able to achieve, to improve the means of transport, supported by the Sandinista government led by your Co-Presidents, so that you can, with all your goodwill, with all your professionalism, improve the transport service to the Nicaraguan people, so that the Nicaraguan people can enjoy better bus services, which have been a very important means of transport for the country and the people, to achieve a better development.

Noting that due to its special geographical and climatic situation, Nicaragua is particularly susceptible to national disasters and the effects of climate change, the Ambassador said that:

“But really human beings now do not have to face this with just their bare hands, we can now resort to technology, and China is an immense country but also vulnerable to natural disasters, we too face typhoons, earthquakes, floods, and so on but thanks to the leadership of the Communist Party of China, the Chinese government, and the efforts of the Chinese people, of the technicians, we have been able to develop some experiences, some very efficient, advanced technologies, to face all those emergency situations.

“And we have wanted to share those experiences, those Chinese technologies, with the Nicaraguan people, so that we can fight together against all those emergency situations, all those natural disasters; so that our peoples can enjoy life in tranquility, in security, more and more every day… And to sum up, China is willing to work together with our Nicaraguan brothers and sisters to develop many other projects, especially projects dedicated to the social sector, so that the Nicaraguan people can enjoy the benefits of our friendship, of our brother and sisterhood.”

Co-President Daniel Ortega began his speech by noting that March 8 was International Women’s Day. Noting its history, he said it was, “Clara Zetkin, who in 1910 at a Conference of Socialist Women, in Copenhagen, proposed and approved the celebration of Working Women’s Day, because it was mainly working women who were marginalised and exploited. And very soon, the following year, in the month of March, the first commemoration took place.

He went on to say that this is a “struggle that we have been waging here in Nicaragua as well, to defeat and eliminate, to extirpate, from our nation, the manifestations of machismo, which in some cases result in causing pain, even tragedy in some families.

“And there, fighting for the peace and security of the Nicaraguan people, the right of women was incorporated, and has also been enshrined in the laws, that when aggression and crimes are committed against working women, Self-sacrificing Women, then the maximum penalty goes to those who commit this type of crimes.”

Ortega pointed out that the ceremony was taking place at the Comandante Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías Roundabout and highlighted the role that the late Venezuelan revolutionary leader had played in the resumption of diplomatic relations between Nicaragua and China:

“A few days ago, on March 5th, we commemorated the 12th Anniversary of his Departure on the Journey to Immortality, but he is present here with us and we remember him well for how he connected with the Nicaraguan people.

“And I remember, dear Ambassador, that on the occasions when I would talk with Comandante Hugo Chávez, he would say to me: Well, and when…? The brothers of the People’s Republic of China are waiting for us. And he loved the People’s Republic of China, like the love we have too have for China.

“But, unfortunately, when the neoliberal governments arrived, they broke our relations with the People’s Republic of China, and three neoliberal Governments passed. And we had to return to the government and achieve a majority in Congress, in the National Assembly, to finally make Comandante Chávez’s dream come true.

“And we can tell you: Here we are, united as brothers and sisters, with the People’s Republic of China, with the Chinese people, with the Chinese Communist Party, and we are proud of that unity, which is a unity in which, we well know, the heroic people of China made an extraordinary revolution led by Mao Zedong, one to which President Xi Jinping has come giving it continuity and new brilliance.

“That is, the revolution in China has not stopped, the revolution in China continues, and now offers itself to the world as a revolution bringing peace, bringing wellbeing, bringing solidarity to the peoples. It does not carry sanctions, nor does it carry threats, nor does it carry wars. It is a revolution of peace, the revolution led by the Chinese Communist Party.”

The final speaker was Co-President Rosario Murillo, who said:

“While Comandante Daniel was talking about that plague, the plague of machismo, which is still something in our culture that we have to combat and overcome, I was remembering how we always thought and said that without revolution it is difficult to achieve women’s rights. And 45 years after the triumph of the revolution, 45 years later, what do we see? That it has been possible to achieve justice for us women, from us as women, because we have a revolution, a revolution in which we all participate with our strength, with our work, with our pride, with our sense of national dignity…

“For years immemorial, the years of the guerrilla Sandinista struggles, women have been there… But now women are in power! At that time, women were combatants, guerrillas, fighters, warriors, and we have always been warriors, fighters and combatants, but now we also constitute power, institutional power.”

Address by Compañero Santi Zhou
Representative for Central America from the Yutong Company

Dear Co-President-Comandante Daniel Ortega; dear Co-President, Comrade Rosario Murillo; dear Ambassador Chen Xi, of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China.

Dear Gentlemen, Compañero Laureano Ortega; Vice Minister Mauricio Aguilar; Compañero Fidel Moreno; Compañeras Fátima and Idalia and your compañeras and compañeros.

Compañeras and compañeros, cordial greetings. A very good afternoon to everyone, and a happy Women’s Day to all the Compañeras present today.

It is a pleasure and an honor for me to be present here. On behalf of Yutong, I want to express to you our pleasure at being able to continue as part of the growth and development of public transport in Nicaragua by supporting its People.

We have been part of this vision of the Government since 2023 and we are grateful to have been chosen for this important development. Yutong is a partner in this challenge and proof of this is our interest and commitment to accompany you throughout the process.

Since the start of our collaboration, we have introduced several batches of buses, with a total of 2,000 units in Nicaragua. Yutong accompanies Nicaraguans in their development.

We thank Compañero Comandante Daniel Ortega and Compañera Rosario Murillo for the opportunity to contribute to the modernization of Nicaraguan public transport, which is now not only present in Managua, Ciudad Sandino and Tipitapa, but will also expanding to other territories, such as Chinandega, Carazo, Masaya, León, Matagalpa, Estelí, Jinotega, Boaco (…)

In addition, it gives us pride to strengthen the bonds of friendship between our Peoples, expanding new horizons for the growth of transport and the important tourism industry, promoting access to the beautiful landscapes of Bluefields and Bilwi.

We are working and moving forward together to offer new Yutong products in the future. Our Team is committed, living and working here, to provide the greatest possible support to the Nicaraguan People, and guarantee accompaniment throughout the life cycle of our products.

Finally, I sincerely hope that the quality of life of the Nicaraguan people continues to improve every day.

Thank you very much, everyone.

Continue reading Daniel Ortega: The continuing Chinese Revolution brings peace, wellbeing and solidarity

CPC congratulates Brazil’s Workers’ Party on its 45th founding anniversary

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has sent a warm message of greetings to the Workers’ Party (PT) of Brazil on the occasion of its 45th founding anniversary.

The message notes that since the PT returned to power in 2023, Brazil’s economy has grown steadily, with rising comprehensive national strength and international influence and status. Alluding to the PT’s stance of promoting national development, poverty alleviation and the interests of working people, its commitment to BRICS and the Global South, and its socialist orientation, the message says that the CPC and the PT share similar ideals, adding that they have understood, trusted and supported each other for a long time, and forged a deep friendship.

The following article was originally published on the website of the CPC International Department (IDCPC).

Recently, the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC) sent a congratulatory letter to the National Executive Committee of the Workers’ Party (PT) of Brazil on the Party’s 45th anniversary. 

The IDCPC expressed in the letter that since the founding of the PT 45 years ago, it has played an active role in promoting Brazil’s economic and social development, advancing regional integration in Latin America, and upholding international fairness and justice. Since President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and the PT came to power again in 2023, they have been committed to reform and proactive in making progress. As a result, Brazil’s economy has grown steadily, with rising comprehensive national strength and international influence and status.

Sharing similar ideals, the CPC and the PT both regard pursuing happiness for the people and national development as the mission. The two Parties have understood, trusted and supported each other for a long time, and forged a deep friendship. In the new era, the CPC is willing to deepen the traditional friendship with the PT, consolidate friendly cooperation, strengthen experience exchanges and mutual learning of party building and state governance, promote the construction of each Party and the development and revitalization of each country, and constantly enrich the significance and strategic connotation of China-Brazil community with a shared future, so as to better benefit the two countries and peoples.

Panama Canal: the next flashpoint of US imperialism?

In this eyewitness account, Tan Wah Piow reports on the mood in Panama, along with the background to the issue, following US President Donald Trump’s brazen threats to “take back” the canal that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Referring to Trump’s “audacity”, Wah Piow notes that: “This is a thriving sovereign nation, a regional financial powerhouse, and, as of January 2025, a newly elected [non-permanent] member of the UN Security Council.”

Citing a vast field of Panamanian flags he saw from his taxi, he notes: “His [the taxi driver’s] words brought back memories of the Museo Canal exhibit on the 1964 Martyrs Day incident when US troops killed 21 Panamanian students for asserting their right to raise the national flag in the US-controlled Canal Zone. The 1964 incident remains deeply ingrained in Panamanian consciousness, symbolising the people’s struggle for independence and control of the Canal.

“That incident was a rallying cry for international solidarity against US imperialism in Latin America. Even Chairman Mao of China issued a statement on January 12, 1964, published in Hong Qi, the Chinese Communist Party’s official organ, supporting the ‘great patriotic struggle’ of the Panamanian people. Back then, China had no diplomatic ties in the region beyond Cuba, and there was no Chinese shipping through the Canal.

“The 1964 Martyrs Day protests ultimately led to the 1977 Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which ceded sovereignty of the Canal to Panama. Under these agreements, Panama gained full control of the Canal in perpetuity.”

Trump’s remarks, he explains, were not merely a one-off provocation or a bargaining tactic, followed as they were by a threatening visit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. 

“Today,” Wah Piow notes, “the Panama Canal sees 14,000 vessels annually, handling 5 per cent of global shipping. China-US trade accounts for about 20 per cent of its traffic, while China-Latin American trade represents another 15-20 per cent. Studies suggest this volume is set to rise, with China already having surpassed the US as the primary trading partner of countries such as Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Trump’s renewed interest in the Canal appears driven by the fear that China is outpacing the US in Latin America.”

He calls on the international community to defend Panamanian sovereignty, “otherwise, a US power play to uphold its imperialist interests could threaten not just Panama but the economic stability of an entire region long hindered by dependence on Washington.”

Tan Wah Piow, a retired London lawyer, has been in exile from Singapore since 1976. He was imprisoned as a student leader for his activism and is Singapore’s most well-known exile. He is also a member of the Friends of Socialist China Advisory Group. He visited Panama in February 2025. This article was originally published in the Morning Star.

Leaving the Museo Canal at Panama Viejo, a Unesco World Heritage Site, I made my way to the Miraflores visitor centre — now a popular spot to witness US imperialism’s refocus on its Central and South American backyard.

It was a pleasant drive along a well-landscaped avenue lined with modern office buildings, banks, and shopping centres that reflect Panama’s booming economy. The ride quickly transitions from the historic ruins of the first European city on the Pacific coast to the sleek skyline of Costa del Este, a planned urban district filled with glass skyscrapers, luxury condos, and multinational corporate headquarters.

The Pacific Ocean stretches toward the horizon, and on the right, high-rise buildings tower in the distance. Downtown Panama City, with its unmistakable F&F Tower’s twisting glass structure, the gleaming towers of global banks, upscale malls, and five-star hotels — symbol of Panama’s role as an international trade hub.

Panama City stands as a testament to the country’s modernity; some may say it is a trophy of neoliberalism. Home to about 55 per cent of Panama’s 4.5 million people, this is hardly the image of a forgotten backwater.

As I took in the urban skyline, I wondered how US President Donald Trump could have the audacity to utter his “take back the Canal” rhetoric as though Panama was some insignificant, godforsaken failed state. This is a thriving sovereign nation, a regional financial powerhouse, and, as of January 2025, a newly elected member of the UN security council.

Approaching Miraflores, my Uber driver pointed out a striking sight — a vast field of Panamanian flags planted on the lawn. At first, I thought it was a modernist art installation. “Planting flags very popular — after Trump’s ‘Recuperar el Canal’ and ‘tomar el Canal de nuevo,’” he explained in broken English. Even without full knowledge of Spanish, I got the gist.

His words brought back memories of the Museo Canal exhibit on the 1964 Martyrs Day incident when US troops killed 21 Panamanian students for asserting their right to raise the national flag in the US-controlled Canal Zone. The 1964 incident remains deeply ingrained in Panamanian consciousness, symbolising the people’s struggle for independence and control of the Canal.

Martyrs Day is still a public holiday, commemorating the sacrifices made to reclaim national sovereignty. The flag-raising dispute even made the cover of Newsweek on January 24, 1964.

That incident was a rallying cry for international solidarity against US imperialism in Latin America. Even Chairman Mao of China issued a statement on January 12, 1964, published in HongQi, the Chinese Communist Party’s official organ, supporting the “great patriotic struggle” of the Panamanian people. Back then, China had no diplomatic ties in the region beyond Cuba, and there was no Chinese shipping through the Canal.

The 1964 Martyrs Day protests ultimately led to the 1977 Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which ceded sovereignty of the Canal to Panama. Under these agreements, Panama gained full control of the Canal in perpetuity, nullifying any lingering US claims of unilateral intervention. At the formal handover ceremony on December 14, 1999, former US president Jimmy Carter told Panama’s President Mireya Moscoso, “It’s yours.”

For Panamanians, the 50-mile-long Panama Canal is a powerful symbol of national sovereignty and identity, serving as the foundation of their nation’s role as a vital link between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Hence, when Trump in January 2025 described the Canal’s transfer as a “disgrace” and alleged that it had fallen under Chinese influence, it reignited painful memories of the 1964 massacre.

The Chinese embassy in Panama swiftly rejected the accusation, as did Hong Kong-based Hutchison, which manages two Panamanian ports. Notably, Hutchison, a publicly traded company, does not control the Panama Canal’s operations.

At the Miraflores Locks, as a massive vessel passed through, a taped announcement reassured visitors that the Panama Canal was under the sole control of the Panama Canal Authority, an independent Panamanian entity. The message emphasised that all vessels transiting the Canal must be piloted by Panamanian captains, who know “every inch” of the waterway. The repetition of this assurance suggested it was directed at US tourists, encouraging them to counter misinformation back home.

Unfortunately, Trump’s remarks were not merely a one-off provocation or a bargaining tactic for free US shipping passage. He complained about transit fees despite all nations paying the same rates. More alarmingly, he dispatched Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Panama with a message that Washington wanted to reclaim control of the Canal, citing alleged Chinese influence. Rubio warned that unless there were “immediate changes,” the US would take necessary steps to “safeguard its rights.”

Even before Rubio’s arrival, protests erupted. The Tico Times reported that demonstrators “categorically reject the US attempts to turn Panama into a protectorate and a colony again.” Teachers’ union leader Diogenes Sanchez declared, “We are going to fight to defend our national sovereignty.”

Meanwhile, Senator Ted Cruz spearheaded a parallel attack from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. A veteran anti-China hawk, Cruz made unsubstantiated claims about China’s threat to the neutrality of the Canal, stating, “The Panama Canal is too important to be left vulnerable to Chinese influence. The US has a responsibility to ensure that the Canal remains neutral and secure, even if that means taking decisive action.”

Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino firmly asserted that the Canal’s sovereignty is “non-negotiable,” yet some domestic critics accused him of yielding to US pressure. Mulino denied claims that US government vessels were exempted from transit fees, calling such reports “lies and falsehoods” propagated by the US State Department. Although Rubio did not repeat the “free transit” claim, he protested that the fees were “absurd.”

Up to 15 per cent of Panama’s GDP is derived from the Canal and its related industries, and with the country’s dollarised economy making the US its largest trading partner, Washington has leverage to exert economic blackmail. Newsweek reported in January 2025 that Panama had abruptly decided not to renew a trade and development agreement with China — a decision President Mulino attributed to “external pressures.”

Had a non-Western nation applied such coercion, the US and European capitals would have responded with deafening condemnations. Yet, Western champions of the “rules-based international order” remain conspicuous in their silence.

Today, the Panama Canal sees 14,000 vessels annually, handling 5 per cent of global shipping. China-US trade accounts for about 20 per cent of its traffic, while China-Latin American trade represents another 15-20 per cent. Studies suggest this volume is set to rise, with China already having surpassed the US as the primary trading partner of countries such as Brazil, Chile, and Peru.

Trump’s renewed interest in the Canal appears driven by the fear that China is outpacing the US in Latin America. The global community, especially the EU and Britain — which claim to uphold international law — must act decisively to protect the Canal’s neutrality and, most importantly, Panama’s sovereignty.

Otherwise, a US power play to uphold its imperialist interests could threaten not just Panama but the economic stability of an entire region long hindered by dependence on Washington.

Xi’s special envoy attends inauguration of Uruguay’s new president

On March 1st, Yamandú Orsi was inaugurated as the new President of Uruguay in the national capital Montevideo. Orsi was elected President in a second, run off round of voting on November 24, 2024, as the candidate of the Broad Front (Frente Amplio). The Broad Front is a coalition of 12 left-wing political parties, foremost among them the Communist Party and the Socialist Party. The front returns to the political leadership of the country after five years in opposition, strengthening the left wing and progressive forces in Latin America.

China’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Han Jun attended the inauguration as the Special Envoy of President Xi Jinping. Among other prominent political figures in attendance were the presidents of Brazil, Colombia and Chile.

Meeting with President Orsi on March 2nd, Han conveyed the greetings and best wishes of Xi Jinping and said that China attaches great importance to the development of China-Uruguay relations and is willing to work hand in hand with Uruguay to lift bilateral relations to higher levels so as to better benefit the two peoples, inject more stability and certainty into Latin America and the international community, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

Orsi said that successive governments of Uruguay have attached great importance to developing relations with China, and there is broad consensus on this across all sectors of society. The new Uruguayan government is willing to work with China to continuously deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, steadily strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, and make joint efforts to defend multilateralism and free trade and cope with global challenges.

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has long maintained close friendly relations with the Broad Front. In August 2024, during his visit to Uruguay, Liu Jianchao, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC), met with a number of its leaders, including Orsi, then the prospective presidential candidate.

Liu said that political parties play an important role in the political life of a country. The CPC attaches importance to its relations with the Broad Front and is willing to further strengthen exchanges between the two Parties at all levels, carry out various forms of exchanges and cooperation, deepen pragmatic cooperation through the channel of political party relations, promote sub-national exchanges, and push the continuous development of China-Uruguay relations.

The Uruguayan side welcomed the CPC delegation, which visited the headquarters of the Broad Front. They said that not long ago, a delegation of the Broad Front cadres visited China at the invitation of the CPC, enhancing their understanding of China and the CPC.

During his visit, Liu also met with Ana Olivera, President of the House of Representatives of Uruguay, who is also a leading member of the Communist Party of Uruguay. She fondly recalled her visit to China and appreciated China’s commitment to comprehensive reform and its great achievements in poverty alleviation and other fields. She said, since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Uruguay and China, successive Uruguayan administrations have advocated friendship with China, with new progress having been made in bilateral relations.

The above-mentioned Broad Front delegation had visited China the previous month, July 2024, and was led by its general coordinator Jorge Gotta.

Meeting the delegation, Minister Liu noted that the CPC and the Broad Front of Uruguay are partners who share the same goals. The two sides should strengthen friendly exchanges, deepen exchanges and mutual learning of experience in state governance and administration, promote practical cooperation in various fields through inter-party channels, and promote the development of China-Uruguay relations and the friendship between the two peoples.

Continue reading Xi’s special envoy attends inauguration of Uruguay’s new president

A new multipolar world or a new cold war? Latin America, China and the rising global South

In the following article, Ben Chacko, Editor of the Morning Star, analyses the position of Latin America as a frontline in the struggle for multipolarity, a struggle which is heavily impacted by the rise of China.

Ben notes that: “Many of the Latin American revolutionary projects that inspire us… are independence struggles as well as class struggles. The two are bound together… Decolonisation remained partial if it was not accompanied by social revolution because formal independence did not necessarily give a country control of its own resources if private property relations, maintaining ultimate Western ownership in many cases, stayed in place… This explains the close association between communist and decolonisation movements through the 20th century.”

The confrontation between the Global North and the Global South runs through the class struggle in country after country in Latin America, reflected not least through the prism of race – the struggle in Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia and other countries of the Afro-descendant and Indigenous oppressed against white supremacism – as well as being key to the continent’s relationship with the United States.

Therefore, Ben argues, “Building a multipolar world is a decolonisation process: one in which countries prevented till now from exercising full sovereignty because their resources are controlled by others are able to ‘stand up,’ as Chairman Mao put it in 1949. They are able to do so because China’s peaceful rise has created an economic counterweight to the West and the network of financial institutions and treaties that maintain Western hegemony.”

The article was originally published in the Morning Star and is based on a talk given by Ben at London’s Latin America Conference held on February 8.  The panel, on ‘A new multipolar world or a new Cold War? Latin America, China and the rising Global South’ was also addressed by Friends of Socialist China co-editor Carlos Martinez and Isaac Saney, Associate Professor and Coordinator of Black and African Diaspora Studies at Canada’s Dalhousie University, and author of  ‘Cuba, Africa, and Apartheid’s End: Africa’s Children Return!’

During the student-led protests that shook Chile a few years ago, a prominent rallying cry was “neoliberalism was born in Chile and will die in Chile.”

It points to the front-line place Latin America has had when it comes to clashes between economic systems and between imperialism and decolonisation. Many of the Latin American revolutionary projects that inspire us, that lots of us come to Adelante! to hear more about, are independence struggles as well as class struggles.

The two are bound together. The poverty and underdevelopment of much of the Third World is down to the domination of economies by Western corporations controlling their natural resources.

Continue reading A new multipolar world or a new cold war? Latin America, China and the rising global South

Trump’s war on China in Latin America

In the following article, Steve Ellner provides a detailed analysis of Donald Trump’s Latin America policy as he embarks on his second presidential term, arguing that its bellicosity is closely related to US imperialism’s increased hostility to China.

According to Ellner: “US President Donald Trump’s threats to take over the Panama Canal, convert Canada into the 51st state and purchase Greenland may not be as ludicrous as they seemed. The proposals, albeit unachievable, lay the groundwork for a more ‘rational’ strategy of targeting China (not so much Russia) and singling out real adversaries (as opposed to Canada and Panama), which include Cuba and Venezuela, with Bolivia not far behind.”

Arguing that much of Trump’s analysis is drawn from the right-wing Heritage Foundation, he draws attention to the think tank’s James Carafano’s advocacy of a “rejuvenation of the Monroe Doctrine”.

Trump’s choice of anti-Cuba zealot Marco Rubio as secretary of state reinforces the perception that the Trump administration’s foreign policy will pay special attention to Latin America and that Latin American policy will prioritise two enemies: China and the continent’s leftist governments. Carafano calls the strategy ‘a pivot to Latin America.’

He notes that the threat to Panama is a reminder that currents on the right and within the Republican Party still denounce the “canal giveaway.” Ronald Reagan warned against it in his attempt to secure the Republican presidential nomination in 1976 and again raised the issue in his successful bid for the presidency four years later.

Drawing attention to what he considers a certain difference in approach from that taken by the US Democratic Party, he observes that, “the McCarthyite new right targets the more leftist Pink Tide leaders such as those of Venezuela and Cuba, but it is not letting moderate ones such as Lula off the hook. Rubio calls Brazil’s Lula a ‘far-left leader,’ while Musk has expressed certainty that he will not be reelected in 2026. Some analysts have raised the possibility that Trump will slap the Lula government with tariffs and sanctions to support the return to power of Jair Bolsonaro and the Brazilian far right.”

Trump’s real target in all three threats [against Panama, Canada and Greenland] was China… Trump made his case for the annexation of the Panama Canal, Canada and Greenland (a gateway to the Arctic) by arguing for the need to block China’s growing presence in the hemisphere…

In the 21st century, China’s investment in and trade with Latin America have increased exponentially. China has now surpassed the US as South America’s top trading partner. Some economists predict that the net value of trade, which in 2022 was valued at $450 billion, will exceed $700 billion by 2035.

When it comes to Washington’s anti-China rhetoric, competition with the US on the economic front receives less attention than it merits. If ever the ‘it’s the economy stupid’ [a phrase made famous by Bill Clinton] statement was apropos, it is in the case of China’s challenge to US hegemony.

The Heritage Foundation’s 38,000-word ‘Plan for Countering China,’ enumerates an endless number of non-economic threats [supposedly] posed by China. Many of the threats put the spotlight on Latin America due to its proximity. For example: ‘China’s role in global drug trafficking, exploiting instability in the US and Latin America caused by illegal migration… The US government should close loopholes in immigration law and policy that China is exploiting.’

Surveying the role played by the Latin American right in this situation, he notes that former Brazilian President Bolsonaro and current Argentine President Milei employed extreme anti-China rhetoric in opposition, only to adopt a more pragmatic approach in office.

“All this indicates that the Trump administration will probably face resistance to its anti-China campaign in Latin America from an unexpected source, namely local business interests.”

This article contains some formulations and opinions with which the editors of this website are not fully in agreement. However, we reproduce it for its detailed factual presentation, interesting analysis and clear anti-imperialist standpoint. It was originally published by Links, an Australian publication which describes itself as an international journal of socialist renewal.  A slightly abridged version was first published in Jacobin.

Steve Ellner is an Associate Managing Editor of Latin American Perspectives and a retired professor at the Universidad de Oriente in Venezuela, where he lived for over 40 years.

US President Donald Trump’s threats to take over the Panama Canal, convert Canada into the 51st state and purchase Greenland may not be as ludicrous as they seemed. The proposals, albeit unachievable, lay the groundwork for a more “rational” strategy of targeting China (not so much Russia) and singling out real adversaries (as opposed to Canada and Panama), which include Cuba and Venezuela, with Bolivia not far behind. The strategy is what James Carafano of the Heritage Foundation calls the “Rejuvenation of the Monroe Doctrine,” which, after all, in its day encompassed Canada and Greenland in addition to Latin America.

Trump’s choice of anti-Cuba zealot Marco Rubio as secretary of state reinforces the perception that the Trump administration’s foreign policy will pay special attention to Latin America and that Latin American policy will prioritise two enemies: China and the continent’s leftist governments. Carafano calls the strategy “a pivot to Latin America.”

Political analyst Juan Gabriel Tokatlian writing in Americas Quarterly was more specific. After citing Trump’s plans for military action against Mexico, Cuba and Venezuela in his first administration, Tokatlian reasons “a second Trump White House may well lack some of the more rational voices that averted more rash actions the first time around.”

Continue reading Trump’s war on China in Latin America

Chinese solidarity in Panama’s long struggle for sovereignty against US imperialism

Following threats by the Trump administration to illegally seize the Panama Canal, Panama’s right wing government, following a visit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, has partially acceded to US pressure by deciding to withdraw from its participation in China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

In a prompt reaction, on February 7, Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Zhao Zhiyuan summoned Miguel Humberto Lecaro Barcenas, Panama’s ambassador to China, to lodge solemn representations over Panama’s decision, to which the Chinese side expressed deep regret.

More than 150 countries actively participate in the BRI, with achievements benefiting the people of various nations, including Panama, Zhao said. “Any attempts to reverse course on the BRI and go against the expectations of the Chinese and Panamanian peoples do not align with the vital interests of Panama.”

China respects Panama’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and advocates for equality among countries of all sizes, mutual respect, and credibility in commitments, Zhao stressed. China firmly opposes the United States wantonly undermining China-Panama relations and discrediting and undermining cooperation under the BRI through pressure and threats.

Lecaro said that Panama values its relationship with China and will promptly report to its government.

That same day, at a regular Foreign Ministry press conference, spokesperson Lin Jian said that China firmly opposes the United States’ actions to smear and sabotage Belt and Road cooperation through pressure and coercion and deeply regrets that Panama will not renew the Memorandum of Understanding on BRI cooperation with China.

China supports Panama’s sovereignty over the Panama Canal and is committed to upholding the Canal’s status as a permanently neutral international waterway, he added. China has never participated in managing or operating the Canal, and never ever has China interfered. The accusation that China has control over the Canal is totally groundless. “The world is not blind to the truth as to who is keeping the Canal neutral and thriving and who keeps threatening to ‘take back’ the Canal.”

It is highly unlikely that this concession by Panama will have the effect of appeasing the Trump administration. If anything, it is likely to further turn the screws on the small Central American country.

In an article published by People’s Dispatch, and also republished by the Morning Star, Tings Chak noted that: “Trump’s rhetoric fits neatly into his vocal expansionist and imperialist ambitions, from annexing Greenland and Canada to ‘taking back’ the Panama Canal, which itself was a product of US interventionism and imperialist interest in the region.”

Tings adds: “Panamanian sovereignty over the Canal Zone became the centre of decades of struggle, coming to a head in January 1964, when students attempted to raise a Panamanian flag there in protest of US imperialism. They were met with brutal repression, and several students were wounded and killed. It wasn’t until the leadership of Omar Torrijo that Panama was finally able to gain its control over the Canal Zone, solidified in the Torrijos-Carter treaties in 1977. As an important victory for Panama’s national sovereignty, the treaties stated that the US would relinquish control of the area in 1979, with the transference of control completed by 1999 – now once again being threatened again by the provocations of Trump’s administration.”

Responding to the events of January 1964, a wave of solidarity swept socialist China, with up to 20 million people taking part in militant anti-imperialist protests. In his statement of support, issued on January 12, 1964, Chairman Mao Zedong declared:

The heroic struggle now being waged by the people of Panama against US aggression and in defence of their national sovereignty is a great patriotic struggle. The Chinese people stand firmly on the side of the Panamanian people and fully support their just action in opposing the US aggressors and seeking to regain sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone.

US imperialism is the most ferocious enemy of the people of the entire world.

It has not only committed the grave crime of aggression against the Panamanian people, and painstakingly and stubbornly plotted against socialist Cuba, but has continuously been plundering and oppressing the people of the Latin American countries and suppressing the national-democratic revolutionary struggles there.

Significantly, and fully in keeping with his consistent analytical framework when assessing international questions, Mao’s brief survey of the global struggle against US imperialism at the time, also stressed:

Even toward its allies in Western Europe, North America and Oceania, US imperialism is pursuing a policy of the law of the jungle, trying hard to trample them underfoot.

Mao’s statement also formed the centrepiece of a pamphlet published by China’s Foreign Languages Press, whose contents also included the texts of messages from Chinese leaders Liu Shaoqi, Zhou Enlai and Zhu De to their Panamanian counterparts. It should be noted that such messages were sent in the spirit of internationalism and without regard to the fact that Panama had yet to establish diplomatic relations with China. China consistently maintained its principled stand in support of Panama’s anti-imperialist struggle for sovereignty, through all its twists and turns, although bilateral diplomatic relations were not established until 2017.

The following articles are republished from the Xinhua News Agency, People’s Dispatch and the Marxist Internet Archive (MIA).

China lodges solemn representations to Panama over withdrawal from BRI cooperation with China

BEIJING, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) — Assistant Foreign Minister Zhao Zhiyuan on Friday summoned Miguel Humberto Lecaro Barcenas, Panama’s ambassador to China, to lodge solemn representations over Panama’s decision to not renew the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation with China on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Panama recently announced the termination of the Memorandum of Understanding on the BRI, to which the Chinese side expressed deep regret, Zhao said.

Under the framework of the BRI, pragmatic cooperation between China and Panama has rapidly developed across various sectors and achieved a series of fruitful results, bringing tangible benefits to Panama and its people, Zhao noted.

More than 150 countries actively participate in the BRI, with achievements benefiting the people of various nations, including Panama, Zhao said. “Any attempts to reverse course on the BRI and go against the expectations of the Chinese and Panamanian peoples do not align with the vital interests of Panama.”

China respects Panama’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and advocates for equality among countries of all sizes, mutual respect, and credibility in commitments, Zhao stressed.

Continue reading Chinese solidarity in Panama’s long struggle for sovereignty against US imperialism

Xi exchanges congratulations with Colombian president over 45th anniversary of ties

China and Colombia have underlined the dynamic nature of their friendship and cooperation at a time when the progressive South American government is facing crude interference and brutal threats from the Trump administration in the United States.

On February 7, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Colombian President Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego exchanged messages greeting the 45th anniversary of the establishment of their bilateral diplomatic relations.

Xi said that since then, both sides have been pushing for the steady development of bilateral ties based on the principles of equality and mutual respect. He further noted that in October 2023, Petro paid a successful state visit to China, during which the two heads of state had a fruitful meeting and jointly announced the establishment of a strategic partnership between the two countries, guiding China-Colombia relations into a new era.

Colombia is an important country in Latin America and will assume the rotating presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) this year, he added, and said that he attaches great importance to developing China-Colombia relations, and is willing to work with Petro to deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries in efforts to jointly build a China-Latin America and the Caribbean community with a shared future.

President Petro noted that he paid a state visit to China after taking office, and bilateral ties have been steadily strengthened with the continuous increase of trade and investment. Colombia is willing to work with China to jointly advance the global agenda of mutual concern, including world peace, energy transition and tackling climate change.

Earlier, on January 28, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post reported that China’s Ambassador to Colombia, Zhu Jingyang told the El Tiempo newspaper that relations between China and Colombia were “at the best moment” since they established diplomatic ties. He added that Colombia and China “are global cultural powers” and that the differences between the two countries “far from creating obstacles, bring us closer and enrich us.”

Coincidentally the Ambassador’s comments were published at the same time as a public row broke out between President Petro and Trump. Colombia denied permission for two US military aircraft, each carrying some 80 Colombian migrant workers, victims of Trump’s racist pogroms that currently threaten millions of workers and their families in the US. With the type of performative cruelty that is among his trademarks, Trump has taken to deporting workers bound and shackled aboard military aircraft.

Petro said he would accept deported migrants again once the US established protocols for their dignified treatment. Trump said on his Truth Social account that by refusing to accept the flights, the “socialist president of Colombia” had put US “national security and public safety” at risk. He announced 25 per cent tariffs on all Colombian imports, including coffee; Colombia is among the leading exporters of the bean to the US.

After a furious riposte from Petro on the social media platform X, the United States acceded to Colombia’s demand for the humane treatment of deportees.

The following article was originally published by the Xinhua News Agency.

BEIJING, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday exchanged congratulations with Colombian President Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego over the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

Since China and Colombia established diplomatic relations 45 years ago, both sides have been pushing for the steady development of bilateral ties based on the principles of equality and mutual respect, said Xi.

Xi noted that in October 2023, Petro paid a successful state visit to China, during which the two heads of state had a fruitful meeting, and jointly announced the establishment of a strategic partnership between the two countries, guiding China-Colombia relations into a new era.

Colombia is an important country in Latin America and will assume the rotating presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States this year, said Xi.

Xi also said he attaches great importance to developing China-Colombia relations, and is willing to work with Petro to deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries in efforts to jointly build a China-Latin America and the Caribbean community with a shared future.

In his message, Petro said the development of bilateral relations has witnessed fruitful results since the two sides established diplomatic ties, delivering benefits to the two peoples.

Frequent high-level visits have strongly boosted bilateral cooperation in various fields, and fostered a deeper bond between the two peoples, he said.

The Colombian president also noted that he paid a state visit to China after taking office, and bilateral ties have been steadily strengthened with the continuous increase of trade and investment.

Colombia is willing to work with China to jointly advance the global agenda of mutual concern, including world peace, energy transition and tackling climate change, he added. 

Panama: Trump’s testing ground for his new Monroe Doctrine

In the opinion piece below, Yuan Sha, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, reports on Donald Trump’s outlandish threat to “take back” the Panama Canal. She notes that the threat “reveals Trump’s hidden agenda to resurrect the infamous Monroe Doctrine” and that, “eying the geostrategic importance of the canal, Trump wants to renege on the agreements and regain US control of the canal”.

Trump and his cronies have justified their increasingly aggressive comments by claiming that China is “operating the canal” and that this compromises US national security. While China is the second largest user of the canal, Yuan Sha points out that “China does not participate in the management and operation of the canal and has never interfered in its affairs”.

Wielding the threat to “take back” the canal – that is, to invade a sovereign country – is a clear violation of international law. Unfortunately it seems this threat has already extracted a concession from the Panamanian government, which has announced its intention to withdraw from the Belt and Road Initiative.

As the author notes, “Trump’s bullying rhetoric on Panama has sent shockwaves across the world, revealing the administration’s penchant to revive the Monroe Doctrine which once provided the pretext for prolonged U.S. military, diplomatic and economic interventions. This is bound to cause more tensions in the region and beyond, eventually disrupting the international order.”

Since returning to the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to “take back” the Panama Canal, alleging – falsely – that it is operated by China. The outlandish threat actually reveals Trump’s hidden agenda to resurrect the infamous Monroe Doctrine, articulated in 1823 to curb Europe’s expansion and promote America’s commercial and security interests, as a pathway to achieve the “Golden Age of America.”

As the new U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio begins his first official trip abroad to Central America, including a stop in Panama, there is worldwide concern about Trump’s end goal, what coercive tactics he might use, and whether he would succeed in bullying the region into giving him what he wants. These questions are critical in assessing the nature of Trump 2.0 foreign policy and its challenges to the international order.

Trump’s outlandish claims

The Panama Canal is a key strategic waterway in Central America linking the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Up to 14,000 ships pass through the canal each year, accounting for around five percent of global maritime trade.

The U.S. used to control the canal from the early 20th century until the end of 1999, after which it handed over control of the canal to the Panama government in accordance with the treaties signed between the Carter administration and Panama in the 1970s. But now, eying the geostrategic importance of the canal, Trump wants to renege on the agreements and regain U.S. control of the canal. 

To justify this, he has lambasted the canal being “foolishly given to Panama,” accusing Panama of charging U.S. ships “exorbitant” fees to use the waterway. He is also falsely claiming that China is “operating the canal,” and cites national security as the necessity for an American takeover.

Trump’s assertion to “take back” the Panama Canal is effectively an infringement on Panama’s sovereignty and goes against international law. Panama has owned and administered the canal since 1999. Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino has rejected Trump’s claim as “nonsense,” saying the canal “was not a gift” from the U.S.

Trump’s claim about China is also outright disinformation. China undoubtedly is the second largest user of the canal, following the U.S., and a major investor in infrastructure in Panama as Panama is the first Latin American country to join the Belt and Road Initiative. But as the Panama government and China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs have clarified, China does not participate in the management and operation of the canal and has never interfered in its affairs.

Trump’s outlandish claims actually reflect his heightened concern over China’s growing investment in Panama. As the Trump 2.0 administration is ready to escalate the “great power competition” with China around the globe, the Panama Canal, not surprisingly, has become a new flashpoint.

What could Trump do?

The question is how serious Trump’s bombastic rhetoric to regain control of the canal is and what he might do to achieve that end.

Trump has hinted at taking it back by force. He could cite the 1977 Neutrality Treaty with Panama which stipulates that the U.S. shall remain permanently neutral, but it reserves the right to defend any threat to the canal’s neutrality by using military force. This outright threat to use military force is regarded as bluff to exact concessions from Panama.

Trump is also likely to use tariffs as a coercive tool. He might repeat the successful maneuver in pressuring Colombia to accept the flights carrying Colombians deported from the U.S. by threatening to impose 25 percent tariff. Trump’s goal is to force the Panama government to curb its engagements with China as well as regain U.S. control over Panama.

Trump has the support of the Republican-controlled Congress. Republican senators recently introduced a resolution, calling on the government of Panama to cut its political and economic ties with China and Chinese businesses. Republican representatives have also introduced a bill in the House to authorize the president to enter into negotiations to acquire the canal from Panama. These legislative moves will further empower Trump’s brazen actions on this matter.

Trump’s new Monroe Doctrine

Trump’s bullying rhetoric on Panama has sent shockwaves across the world, revealing the administration’s penchant to revive the Monroe Doctrine which once provided the pretext for prolonged U.S. military, diplomatic and economic interventions.

In fact, Trump wanted to resuscitate the doctrine in his first administration itself. In September 2018, he declared in the United Nations General Assembly, “It has been the formal policy of our country since President Monroe that we reject the interference of foreign nations in this hemisphere and in our own affairs.” He also expressed his admiration for President Theodore Roosevelt, who seized the Panama Canal and added the famous “Roosevelt Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine, stating that the U.S. had the right to intervene in Latin American domestic affairs.

The Trump 2.0 administration seems to be all out to revive this doctrine, along with the bluster to force Denmark to sell Greenland to the U.S., make Canada the 51st state of the U.S., and change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.” Trump has also made startling proclamations in his inaugural address such as the U.S. needs to “expand our territory” and “carry our flag into new and beautiful horizons.” He has made no secret of his intention to reinstate U.S. control over the Western Hemisphere.

However, the Monroe Doctrine is dead and anachronistic and Trump’s bullying has already triggered pushbacks. Panama has made a formal complaint to the United Nations, emphasizing that the UN Charter precludes “the threat or use of force” against territorial integrity. Denmark, Canada and Mexico have also rejected Trump’s outrageous claims.

But it is disconcerting that with a unified Congress, a loyal cabinet and the strong Make America Great Again movement, as well as the obsession with competition with China, Trump might face little constraint in practicing an expansionist foreign policy agenda. This is bound to cause more tensions in the region and beyond, eventually disrupting the international order.

China and Nicaragua share experiences and concepts in fighting against imperialism, colonialism and hegemony

The strong fraternal relations between the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) of Nicaragua were underlined in a January 13 meeting in Beijing between Liu Jianchao, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC), and a delegation led by Fidel Antonio Moreno Briones, Secretary General of the Managua Mayor’s Office and Organisation Secretary of the FSLN.

Liu said, under the strategic guidance and personal promotion of President Xi Jinping and President Daniel Ortega, China and Nicaragua have seen strong development in bilateral relations, and officially established a strategic partnership in 2023, continuously releasing the dividends of the resumption of diplomatic relations. He said, despite different scales, the CPC and the FSLN have always treated each other as equals and respected each other. The two parties have similar experiences and shared concepts in fighting against imperialism, colonialism and hegemony.

Moreno said, since the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries fruitful results have been achieved in practical cooperation in various fields, bringing tangible benefits to the Nicaraguan people. The delivery and operation of buses produced in China have boosted the development of Nicaragua’s public transportation system. Nicaragua is willing to continue to strengthen practical cooperation with China in economy, trade, transportation, humanities and other fields. The CPC, a century-old party, has led the Chinese people to make great achievements in poverty alleviation, environmental protection and economic development, providing important inspiration and reference for the FSLN.

Earlier, on January 8, Ma Hui, Vice-Minister of the IDCPC met with a delegation led by Enrique Santiago, Secretary General of the Communist Party of Spain (PCE).

Ma spoke positively of the relations between the two parties and countries, saying that the CPC is willing to deepen traditional friendship with the PCE, strengthen exchanges and mutual learning on state and party governance, enhance political mutual trust between China and Spain and deepen pragmatic cooperation between the two countries through inter-party channels, and promote mutual understanding between the two peoples.

Santiago said, the PCE appreciates the economic and social achievements made by the Chinese people under the leadership of the CPC and is willing to further strengthen inter-party exchanges and cooperation with the CPC, continuously deepen China-Spain comprehensive strategic partnership and jointly contribute to world peace and stability.

The following articles were originally published on the website of the IDCPC.

Liu Jianchao Meets with a Delegation of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) of Nicaragua

Beijing, January 13th (IDCPC) — Liu Jianchao, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC), met here today with a delegation led by Fidel Antonio Moreno Briones, Secretary General of the Managua Mayor’s Office and Organization Secretary of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) of Nicaragua.

Continue reading China and Nicaragua share experiences and concepts in fighting against imperialism, colonialism and hegemony

Friends of Socialist China stand with the Bolivarian Revolution and a multipolar world

Nicolás Maduro was inaugurated as President of Venezuela for a third term on January 10.

Wang Dongming, a vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) attended the inauguration as the Special Envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping. He was among many senior political figures to participate, including the Presidents of Cuba and Nicaragua, the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the former President of Honduras, the Special Envoy of the Russian President, the General Secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), and official representatives from Bolivia, Algeria, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Serbia, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada and Saint Lucia among others.

Meeting with Maduro after his inauguration, Wang said that, in September 2023, Xi and Maduro jointly announced the elevation of China-Venezuela relations to an all-weather strategic partnership, leading bilateral relations into a new era. Last year, the two sides solemnly celebrated the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties, and the friendship between the two countries has become more deeply rooted in the hearts of the two peoples.

Maduro asked Wang to convey his highest respect and sincere greetings to Xi and extended his gratitude to him for sending a special envoy to attend the inauguration ceremony of his new term.

Venezuela, he said, attaches great importance to developing the China-Venezuela all-weather strategic partnership and firmly supports China in safeguarding its core interests. Venezuela stands ready to join hands with China to advance practical cooperation in various fields, strengthen the exchange of governance experience, and lift bilateral ties to a new level.

Earlier, on January 7, another Special Envoy of President Xi, Hao Mingjin, also a vice chairperson of the NPC Standing Committee, attended the inauguration of Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama in the capital Accra.

Meeting Mahama after the inauguration, Hao said that China deeply values its traditional friendship with Ghana and remains committed to fostering China-Ghana relations from a strategic and long-term perspective. This year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. China is ready to take this opportunity to enhance communication with Ghana within the frameworks of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), aiming to elevate the China-Ghana strategic partnership to new heights.

An analysis of the significance of Mahama’s electoral victory may be read here.

In Venezuela, the high-level delegations were joined by representatives of progressive and popular movements from around 120 countries. Friends of Socialist China was honoured to send a delegation to Venezuela on this occasion.

We publish below the report and reflections of one of our delegates, Russel Harland, a fulltime trade union official and member of our Britain Committee. The other articles below were originally published by the Xinhua News Agency.

Three other articles by our comrades David Peat and Fiona Sim were published in the Morning Star.

Friends of Socialist China is also among the sponsors of a webinar, ‘Defending the Bolivarian Revolution: Delegates report back from Venezuela’ being organised by the International Manifesto Group (IMG) on Saturday February 1. You can register here.

Xi’s special envoy attends Venezuelan president’s inauguration

CARACAS, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping’s special envoy Wang Dongming attended here the inauguration of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at the invitation of the Venezuelan government on Friday.

Maduro met with Wang, also vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, at the presidential palace after the inauguration.

Wang conveyed cordial greetings and good wishes from Xi to Maduro and congratulated him on his re-election as president of Venezuela.

Wang said that in September 2023, Xi and Maduro jointly announced the elevation of China-Venezuela relations to an all-weather strategic partnership, leading bilateral relations into a new era.

Last year, the two sides solemnly celebrated the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties, and the friendship between the two countries has been more deeply rooted in the hearts of the two peoples, Wang said.

China is willing to work with Venezuela to continue to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, consolidate and develop the traditional friendship, and push forward bilateral relations for the benefit of the two peoples, Wang said.

Maduro asked Wang to convey his highest respect and sincere greetings to Xi, and extended his gratitude to Xi for sending a special envoy to attend the inauguration ceremony of his new term.

Venezuela attaches great importance to developing China-Venezuela all-weather strategic partnership, and firmly supports China in safeguarding its core interests, Maduro said, adding that Venezuela stands ready to join hands with China to advance practical cooperation in various fields, strengthen the exchange of governance experience, and lift bilateral ties to a new level.

Continue reading Friends of Socialist China stand with the Bolivarian Revolution and a multipolar world

Has US considered why it can’t stop China from developing in Latin America?

The following article by Ding Gang, originally published in Global Times, addresses president-elect Donald Trump’s recent threat to demand the “full and unconditional return” of the Panama Canal to the United States, asserting that the canal is essentially being run by China.

The accusation is of course nonsense; Chinese involvement in the operation of the canal is limited to a terminal renovation project led by a Chinese company, won through international bidding. Meanwhile, the threat to take the canal back is clearly illegal, and constitutes a violation of Panama’s sovereignty.

What is true is that economic cooperation between China and the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is blossoming. “China’s economic engagement has significantly expanded in the Caribbean, with trade volumes rising to over $11.8 billion in 2023. In the past two decades, Chinese companies have initiated major infrastructure and economic projects in Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Trinidad and Tobago.”

The key difference between China’s approach and that of the US is that “China’s growing influence in the region comes entirely from peaceful economic engagement and trade-based energy rather than military force… China is fostering deeper ties with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean by emphasizing mutual economic benefits and sustainable development rather than geopolitical rivalry.”

The US might want to impede the China-LAC relationship, but it will not succeed, since this is a relationship which benefits the peoples of the region without compromising their sovereignty and independence.

Ding Gang is a senior editor with People’s Daily, and a senior fellow with the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China.

Wang Xuguang, then a project manager at China Harbour Engineering Company, witnessed the same scene every day: cargo ships loaded with containers slowly passing through the Panama Canal, heading toward the Atlantic Ocean in the distance.

When I interviewed in Panama a decade ago, his company was building a terminal for the Taiwan company Evergreen Marine Corp. at Colón Port in Panama.

A Panamanian local half-jokingly told me that if Latin America is called the “backyard” of the US, then the location of this terminal must be regarded as the “front gate” of that backyard.

Fast forward 20 years – again, at this port, a terminal renovation project led by Hong Kong’s Hutchison Whampoa Limited drew criticism from several American politicians and media outlets. They claimed that the investment posed a potential threat to US shipping lines and pressured Washington to pay attention to the possibility of China gaining operational control over the Panama Canal. 

However, in the 2010s, China Harbour Engineering Company won the contract for this project through international bidding, and this time, no American media expressed excessive concern. 

Chinese companies and manufacturing in Panama and other Latin American countries have become commonplace.

Over the past 100 years, the canal’s operation has changed little. Yet the Panama Canal’s shipping routes have expanded from dozens to 144, now serving over 1,700 ports across 161 countries and regions. The “nationality” of the ships passing through the canal has also quietly transformed. 

When entering the top-floor exhibition hall of the Panama Canal Museum, visitors are immediately greeted by a model of a COSCO shipping vessel. Above it is a large photograph of a container-laden cargo ship passing through the canal.

Currently, China is the second-largest user of the Panama Canal, next only to the US. It is also the second-largest source of cargo using the canal and the second-largest destination for cargo transported. 

Meanwhile, the Colón Port, the world’s second-largest free trade zone after Hong Kong, has become a vital trade hub connecting China with Latin America. Over 90 percent of Chinese goods exported to the region, including neighboring countries such as the US, pass through this port. Panama has also emerged as a focal point for Chinese business investment in Latin America.

However, US President-elect Donald Trump has recently cited this development as a reason to take back control of the Panama Canal, hinting that the US cannot allow China to control such a strategically vital waterway.

On December 21, Trump posted on social media: “When President Jimmy Carter foolishly gave it away, for One Dollar, during his term in Office, it was solely for Panama to manage, not China, or anyone else.”

Panama’s President José Molino strongly condemned such hegemonic threats.

Trump’s comments emphasized the strategic significance of the Panama Canal. Still, he conveniently ignored an elementary truth – China’s growing influence in the region comes entirely from peaceful economic engagement and trade-based energy rather than military force. China has never sent a single soldier to the area.

China’s economic engagement has significantly expanded in the Caribbean, with trade volumes rising to over $11.8 billion in 2023. In the past two decades, Chinese companies have initiated major infrastructure and economic projects in Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Trinidad and Tobago.

These projects showcase how China is fostering deeper ties with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean by emphasizing mutual economic benefits and sustainable development rather than geopolitical rivalry. 

It has delivered the material for mutual economic development, including products supporting US and Chinese trade. The development of the Caribbean region is also beneficial to the US.

Washington had no intention of calculating how much profit it had gained through the canal due to its investments and trade with China. Instead, it monitors others’ ledgers while ignoring how Latin America benefits from the trade relationship with China. What is deeply hidden here is why the US wants to, but cannot, stop China’s economic and trade relations from developing in this region.

Daniel Ortega: China has won the respect, affection and friendship of the peoples of the world

On 13 December 2024, a ceremony took place marking the delivery of 400 buses, manufactured by the Chinese company Yutong (which has its origins in the Zhengzhou Bus Repair Factory, established in 1963), to Nicaragua, an important part of the Nicaraguan government’s plan to modernise its public transport system.

In his speech, Chen Xi, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Nicaragua, observed that in the three years since bilateral relations were re-established, “China and Nicaragua have been able to develop deeper, more solid friendly relations, and the successes of this friendship are becoming ever more visible and palpable every day for the peoples of our two Countries”. Cooperation is blossoming in the areas of transport, education, digital telecommunications, housing, and cultural exchange.

Referencing the impressive progress made in Nicaragua under the people-centred Sandinista government, Chen Xi added: “We are very satisfied that with the Sandinista Popular Revolution and the firm leadership of the Sandinista Government led by Comandante Daniel Ortega, by Compañera Vice President Rosario Murillo, the dreams of the Heroes, of the Sandinista Martyrs, may become reality.”

President Daniel Ortega also gave a speech, expressing profound gratitude for the solidarity and support of the People’s Republic of China. “This transportation that we have here today is transportation resulting from the solidarity of the people of the People’s Republic of China.”

Ortega further praised China’s foreign policy and its orientation towards a multipolar world of peace and prosperity:

In this world that is so on fire, the People’s Republic of China, with President Xi Jinping, raises the banner of peace with all firmness, and where the brothers of the People’s Republic of China arrive, they arrive with the banner of peace. They don’t set out to promote wars, they don’t set out to snatch away wealth, they don’t set out to appropriate land; on the contrary, they set out to promote development for the peoples of Africa, of Asia, of Latin America… The Chinese People, the Chinese Government, is winning and has won the respect, affection, friendship of the peoples of the world, as it has won the heart of the Nicaraguan people.

We republish below the speeches by Chen Xi and Daniel Ortega. They first appeared in English on the Tortilla Con Sal website.

Address by Ambassador Chen Xi

Dear Comandante Daniel Ortega Saavedra, President of the Republic of Nicaragua; dear Compañera Rosario Murillo, Vice President of the Republic of Nicaragua; dear Friends, Comandante Lumberto Campbell; our dear compañero Fidel Moreno; fellow Chinese compatriots from the YUTONG Company and other compañeros and compañeras from the Board of Directors; dear Transport Operators, Workers of the Transport Network; also our Friends from the Press. A very good evening, everyone.

At a time when China and Nicaragua are celebrating the Third Anniversary of the re-establishment of Diplomatic Relations between our two Countries, we are meeting here today to proceed with a new delivery of Chinese buses to Nicaragua’s Transport Cooperatives.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my warm congratulations to the YUTONG Company and the Nicaraguan Cooperatives for this magnificent Cooperation between China and Nicaragua. I also want to express my sincere greeting to the Nicaraguan people for having been able to continuously enjoy this good transport service, with the Sandinista Government led by Comandante Daniel Ortega and Vice President Rosario Murillo.

Three years is really not very long, a short time, but thanks to the attention of the Leaders of China and Nicaragua, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Nicaraguan President Comandante Daniel Ortega, Vice President Rosario Murillo, and also thanks to the joint efforts of all our governmental and social Institutions, China and Nicaragua have been able to develop deeper, more solid friendly relations, and the successes of this friendship are becoming ever more visible and palpable every day for the peoples of our two Countries.

For example, since the entry into force of the Free Trade Agreement between China and Nicaragua on January 1st of this current year, bilateral trade between China and Nicaragua has developed at a very accelerated speed. Nicaraguan exports to China, according to Nicaraguan statistics, have achieved an increase of more than 250% in the first 10 months of this year, as well as Cooperation Projects in various areas. For example, in the construction of the “New Victories” housing, progress has been made successfully, with quality and with speed, in less than a year. A few days ago I made a tour of the Project and they will soon be ready for delivery, with their good quality offering comfort for the Nicaraguan people.

Other Energy and Transport Projects are also moving forward comfortably, at full speed.

This is so not only in the economic and commercial areas, but in many other areas, such as technology, Huawei Company has been offering important Cooperation to achieve much better development of Digital Telecommunications technology, of much better quality and with a higher level of progress.

Cooperation in educational areas is also developing. China and Nicaragua are cooperating in promoting a Project called the Luban Project, by means of which the Chinese side is going to provide equipment to INATEC so that it can prepare the highest quality, latest generation technologies here in Nicaragua.

Recently, more than three months ago, the first Confucius Institute was established in Managua, at the UNAN-Managua. This institute is preparing Nicaraguans to speak Chinese perhaps much more fluently than the Spanish I speak. They are also getting to know the millenia-old Chinese Culture, willing to develop together with the Peoples of the World, for the Prosperity and Well-being of our Peoples.

Yesterday and today a group of musical artists are visiting Nicaragua, carrying out musical cultural exchanges with the Nicaraguan people, with Nicaraguan artists, and today they are going to hold a concert at the Rubén Darío National Theater. In other words, all the successes of our Cooperation are bearing fruit for the Peoples of our Countries, and all this is due to the will of both the Chinese and the Nicaraguan Governments, the will of the Leaders of our two Countries to accelerate, to deepen our friendship and our Cooperation for the benefit of our Peoples.

Last December, precisely on December 20th last year, Comandante Daniel Ortega held a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping in which both Leaders reached broad consensus to promote and deepen our cooperation in broad areas in all aspects that we can develop.

So I am sure that our Friendship, our Cooperation will continue to deepen and achieve greater successes for our two Peoples.

Thank you.

Today also coincides with the 73rd anniversary of the birth of Comandante Camilo Ortega Saavedra. We are very satisfied that with the Sandinista Popular Revolution and the firm leadership of the Sandinista Government led by Comandante Daniel Ortega, by Compañera Vice President Rosario Murillo, the dreams of the Heroes, of the Sandinista Martyrs, may become reality.

And as Comandante Campbell has said, they have been able to achieve great successes throughout Nicaragua’s territory, both on the Caribbean and Pacific Coasts, throughout the National Territory, which is due to the heroism, to the industriousness of the Nicaraguan people.

China is always together with Nicaragua, realizing the dreams of both the Chinese people and the Nicaraguan People for a better Life, more Well-being of the People, the Prosperity of our Countries, to strive together, as they say, side by side, hand in hand, out of Solidarity, firm in our Ideals, so that we advance together, so that the World can enjoy a Community of Shared Destiny, and this delivery today is another testament to the will of the Nicaraguan Government and also of the will of China to cooperate, to work together with the Nicaraguan People.

Thank you very much.

Address by Daniel Ortega

Nicaraguan brothers and sisters, families managing to participate in this Event today even if you are far from this place, because as Comandante Lumberto Campbell recalled, Electricity coverage now, Electrical Energy is reaching the Communities, the Towns of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua; and so we greet you, all of you watching via television

And so much pride for Peoples who were marginalized, who were not part of the country’s development, who were confined, imprisoned, because there were not even road communications, and they had to travel during very long days. There was not enough transportation, and so we all had to wait for the vehicles that passed that way to take their passengers just so far and then return back with other passengers, for an exchange to be able to take place.

They were truly dramatic conditions, many of you have traveled that route, or made that journey when there were no Highways. We made that journey when there were no Highways, when the Triumph of the Revolution was just beginning and our Programs included building Highways, Roads and Schools, but the US Government, under Ronald Reagan, decided to launch war against us.

Coming out of a War of Liberation that allowed us to overthrow the Somoza tyranny and the Yankee domination over Nicaragua, President Reagan immediately came and approved funds to arm the Counterrevolution so that we would kill each other here, Brother against Brother. He did not approve funds for Peace, he did not approve funds to build the Roads that were so badly needed, not only on the Caribbean Coast, because also all the very many roads which were needed in this Pacific Region, how many bridges were needed, the streets of the cities, the streets of Managua were destroyed.

But what the Empire in its madness did was to approve millions of millions of dollars for death. That naturally left the Caribbean Coast in even more complex, even more difficult conditions, and even worse when they provoked confrontation between Brothers, Sisters . Because here we are all Brothers and Sisters, and when we are in a confrontation where there are shootings, where there are fires, where a compañero is doused with fuel and then they set fire to him, that brings neither Peace nor Stability to any Country.

And we discovered the Caribbean Coast ourselves, in the year 1979, just after the Triumph of the Revolution we made a long journey with Lumberto and other compañeros and compañeras, and it gave us insight, for just to cross the river, the famous Wawa River, I had no idea that we had to stop because there was a very wide river there where there was no way to cross it except with a boat or with a barge that moved from one side to the other.

That is to say, the barge was used to pick up vehicles that were going from Managua to the Coast, the vehicles were mounted on the boat, they crossed, the vehicles got off and then the vehicles that came the other way were mounted. That alone, that alone was an economic loss, a waste of time, because it was not a quick operation, it was a very slow operation, and when the rainy season came and the Wawa River swelled, the Wawa River overflowed, and the barge would be carried away by the Wawa River, ending up who knows where, then road communication would be cut.

There was also aerial communication, by flight, but very expensive, using planes with little capacity, that is, they could transport very few people, even if the plane was large, given the payment for the flight, people could not afford it.

And in those Communities, in the Regions, we were discovering another world there, where the Pacific Coastal area seemed like a world of luxury, compared to the world of the Caribbean Coast. And today, fulfilling our Commitment to develop the Caribbean, to build Highways, Roads, bring Energy, Water, etc., we are making progress there, but we needed transportation yes, and this transportation that we have here today is transportation resulting from the Solidarity of the People of the People’s Republic of China.

And we thank President Xi Jinping, and we thank the People of the People’s Republic of China, who also have great challenges and are fighting great Battles for the Well-being of the Peoples of the World, fighting great Battles against those who want war, who promote war, and who are waging war. Fighting battles for peace!

In this World that is so on fire, the People’s Republic of China, with President Xi Jinping, raises the Banner of Peace with all firmness, and where the Brothers of the People’s Republic of China arrive, they arrive with the Banner of Peace. They don’t set out to promote wars, they don’t set out to snatch away wealth, they don’t set out to appropriate land, to the contrary, they set out to promote Development for the Peoples of Africa, of Asia, of Latin America.

Today we are joined here by compañero Pedro Li Yingbin, who is the Director for Latin America of Transportation. Here’ is the Compañero. Welcome! Your first visit to Nicaragua. Welcome!

Just look at the development of Projects for the Well-being of our Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. That shows a Heart where there is Respect, a Heart where there is Love, a Heart that even with all the attacks that are launched against the People’s Republic of China, the slanders, the threats, the Chinese People, their Leaders, are a People with Leaders of great Wisdom who do not allow themselves to be provoked, and continue to do what they have to do, even when they are being threatened. Because they are being threatened by the Imperialist Powers, led by the Yankees and the Europeans, they are being threatened… Imagine, how they threaten you! They threaten you because they are possessed by the devil, the devil is the one they have inside. Instead of Heart, they are full of devils, demons, hungry to dominate the World, to invade the World, to continue provoking war around the World.

In the face of these threats, we hear their threats every day and they are made by the main Leaders of Western Europe, the main Leaders of NATO, the main Leaders of the United States of North America, making threats in every field against the People’s Republic of China, simply because the Chinese People, the Chinese Government, is winning and has won the Respect, Affection, Friendship of the Peoples of the World, as it has won the Heart of the Nicaraguan People.

We have listened to the Brother Ambassador, compañero Chen Xi, who made a good summary of all the things under way, and since he does not stay in his office, but goes out to see how the Projects are going, making their way, what the quality is of the Projects.

Today we are in the month of December, a month that is one of Celebration here in Nicaragua, we have celebrated, commemorating the Virgin, the Virgin Mary, Mary of Nicaragua, Nicaragua of Mary, and we cried out: Who causes so much Joy? And the People have gone about everywhere, with Joy, with Tranquility, with Solidarity. And we also commemorated the little Virgin of Guadalupe, who is also beloved by the Nicaraguan People, the Virgin of Guadalupe. Our Christian Brothers and Sisters from different Evangelical Churches have also made their own Celebrations, because everyone here has the right to celebrate, to honor their Religious Principles.

As regards the date that the buses were coming being on this date, it was never deliberately thought about or planned to bring them for these days, it’s just that was the calculation made by the Technicians, the Specialists, to see when these 400 buses could be taken to Nicaragua; they made the calculations and everything else, no one was thinking about this Celebration.

And you see we can tell you that in these Holidays, in which falls also the Birth of Christ, Christ Jesus, in these Christmas Holidays, the God of all the inhabitants of this Planet Earth, because regardless of any particular Religion, there is a God, and God has brought to the Nicaraguan People, via the hand of the People of the People’s Republic of China, this new gift for the Nicaraguan People.

Also this delivery of buses coincides with the birth of Camilo, my younger brother. Camilo was not born in Chontales, I was born while still in Chontales, in La Libertad, why? Because my father, who was born in the region of Las Rinconadas, there in Masatepe, his mother, a cook, on a small dirt-floor shack throwing tortillas, selling curds, cheese, I don’t know how he did it but he managed to get to Sixth Grade himself, then he started looking for a job and came to work in Granada, in a Pharmacy, and he took advantage of being there to read, to cultivate himself. At that time there was a gold rush in Chontales, in La Libertad, Chontales, Santo Domingo, in all those towns, and even the rich went there to set up their companies and exploit the gold, as well as those without a job were going there looking for how to get work, and my father left for La Libertad looking for work, and they gave him a job in one of the mines.

There he met my mother, who was born in La Libertad, and they had a girl, my elder sister, the girl of course in very poor conditions. And the fevers that constantly attack, that continue to attack, such that children have to be taken care of and adults have to be taken care of, at the age of five, I did not manage to meet her, since I had not been born, but I saw her photograph, a photo taken of her on the cobbled streets of La Libertad, as a five-year-old girl she died.

Then another child came, a boy, and the boy began to grow up but also suffered from the same ailments that children get, and more so in situations of poverty, and at the age of 4 he also died. My two siblings are buried there, at the entrance to La Libertad, in the cemetery. The little girl, Germania, and the boy, Siegfried, those two children lie there.

But the family were in need of work and they stayed in La Libertad, and suddenly I arrived, and God must have wanted me to survive, because the way things were going was not great either… I arrived, and over time, in very difficult conditions, they managed to do a little better… I remember that my mother used to say how she dreamed of a little house, but there was no chance of the little house, and so in order to rent, to rent rooms they moved to Juigalpa.

In Juigalpa, we also slept in one room there, at that time, my father, my mother and I were sleeping in scissor-beds; and in Juigalpa Humberto was born, and then in Juigalpa another little girl was also born, whom my father also named Germania to replace the girl who had died, and so we were then a Family of three children, Germania, Humberto and me, plus my father and my mother.

Then, since conditions were still very difficult because for a poor family migrating from one place to another is not easy, they decided to come here to Managua.

Meanwhile, two things had happened before they met in La Libertad: My father had been thrown into prison because he was with General Sandino, and they had already ordered his assassination. But my father was very firm, and in the end, because my father’s grandfather had been a Teacher, a Principal, that helped to keep him from being executed.

And back then my mother, living in La Libertad, had a boyfriend in Juigalpa, and that boy from Juigalpa left for Costa Rica but they wrote to each other, and sometimes they wrote in code words, a game of boys and girls, of young people, quite normal. But the National Guard was intercepting correspondence, and when they found those letters with code words, they immediately sent my mother to prison there in La Libertad.

They brought her from La Libertad by truck to Puerto Díaz; to Puerto Díaz by boat, and then to Granada, and then from Granada to Campo Marte, to interrogate her. They thought they had discovered a great conspiracy, but there was no such conspiracy.

And my father was always like that, pounding away with his Revolutionary, Sandinista Principles, and we listened to him, we just listened, we listened, and that formed our consciousness. But they were also Christians and talked a lot about Christ, and that’s where when I heard about Christ, I became an admirer of Christ, and subconsciously I was already becoming a Revolutionary.

Because for me Christ was someone really extraordinary, because he was there visiting the poor, helping the poor, healing the poor. Christ did not walk around in fine clothes, Christ did not ask to have a palace built for him like the one in the Vatican. Christ never asked for a palace, he was born in a humble ranch and lived in the houses of the townspeople.

That was when my Revolutionary Feeling was born, it was not because I had read or known other revolutionary experiences, but because of what Christ meant, and that led me to fight and then commit myself to the Struggle of Sandino, and to commit myself to the Struggle of the Sandinista Front. Also Camilo, the same, in the same way, and Humberto, so; in other words, we didn’t go to sign up to some Party to become Revolutionaries, but that’s how it turned out, and suddenly, when my father saw that we were then discussing things, he started taking us to a few demonstrations that were taking place here, like when some Student Leaders had been murdered there in León. In those demonstrations, the National Guard came with clubs, with bullets, killing people, but even so we forged on.

But, going back a little, we lived in Juigalpa for a while and from Juigalpa we moved to Managua. Here in Managua my father looked for a place to rent a room, and he rented one, he found a room here near the Stanley Cayasso Baseball Stadium, the old former Stadium, over there.

And such are the ironies of Life, the owner of the apartments had given them the name “Colonia Somoza”, not that we paid mind to that, nor did my father, he was simply looking for the apartment and he found the room, renting it for 50 pesos. They were apartments that had a living room and then the bedroom where there were two, three scissor-beds, a sink for washing, a wire to hang clothes out and a bathroom. They were small apartments of 50 pesos, at that time 50 pesos was a lot.

Camilo hadn’t been born there yet, and we, boys, well. Camilo was born in 1951, I was born in 1945, that is to say in 1951 I would have been 6 years old, Humberto would have been 5 years old, La Germania would have been 3 years old. Then, a moment came which caught our attention when we saw that every afternoon, and also at night, a lady with a cloth over her head, all covered up, would come in, and the living room and the room were divided by curtains, there was no door, only curtains; then the lady opened the curtain and entered. And for us, it was a mystery, but we did not even ask what the lady was doing there, until one of those days we heard the screams of Camilo. Because my mother gave birth to us all naturally with a midwife, she had six children helped by a midwife. And for Camilo, that lady whom we didn’t know who she was, was in fact the Midwife who came to take care of her, and she’s the one who assisted her delivery in the end, and everything went well, thank God.

And by those ironies of Life, Camilo was born in an apartment of the Colonia Somoza. And then joining the Struggle, studying, because we were students, but already integrated into the Struggle, first with the Revolutionary Student Front, then with Patriotic Youth, and then the Sandinista Front, finally with the Sandinista National Liberation Front, we all took that way.

Camilo was the youngest, and really, if we went by biological reasoning we would say, the first ones who must die are the older ones, but it’s not like that, life’s not like that.

Camilo fought for Unity and that was recognized by Colleagues who did not agree over Unity. But when Camilo received weapons, he would tell us that the compañeros of another group were asking him for weapons, and he thought it was good thing to give them weapons because that would allow us to be more united. And that’s what he did, he gave them the weapons, and that’s what strengthened us and that’s why the People and Sandinismo called Camilo, a Revolutionary Comandante, the Apostle of Unity.

We have heard the words of Guillermo, who is a worthy representative of the transport operators, the bus operators who are an essential body offering service to the population, and the Bus Operators are well known for being hardworking and humble, but also combative. Not fighting for fighting’s sake, but fighting when it is necessary to defend the Rights of the Transport Operators, the Rights of the People, the Rights of Workers. And now a greater responsibility for you, Brothers and Sisters, with more buses, and I tell you to make every effort, the maximum effort, not to be fighting for passengers and driving at high speed; we are having and have had too many deaths due to traffic accidents. We are not saying that you are at fault, but that we do have many deaths due to traffic accidents.

With the Police we are working on a Plan, where, motorists should not be surprised, those who are speeding should not be surprised, when the Police stop them and punish them, taking away their license, prohibiting them for a certain time from driving, their vehicles will be withheld, whether it is a motorcycle or any other vehicle.

Other accidents really have more to do with vehicles in bad condition; which requires more attention. You Brothers and Sisters have the advantage that you are working with a company that gives us more capability to take care of vehicles and discover defects that may cause an accident.

But we also send this message to compañeros and compañeras operating transport who are not in these programs of ours, to be more careful, to realize that it is the lives and well being of their passengers that are in their hands. Because we have many traffic accidents and it is terrible to see the suffering of relatives seen lying there on the street, dead or seriously injured.

There have been many accidents over these days, so the responsibility is great, Brothers and Sisters, and we trust in you that you will be the first to take care of these vehicles and to see that fewer accidents occur. There will always be accidents, but they have to decrease, we must decrease the number of accidents.

And dear Ambassador, please tell him, tell President Xi Jinping, that today, December 13th on the day of the anniversary of Camilo’s birth, of the Apostle of Unity, here in the company of the Bus Operators who have discipline, who have Conscience and who are among those who don’t take one step back, please tell the President that on this day, among these Religious Celebrations, you have carried out the delivery of buses and are making a delivery right now.

They began delivering buses, mind, in October of last year with 250, in November of last year with 250, in May of this year with 250, in July of this year with 250, and in August this year with 100… And today, this December 13th, 400 buses. For a overall total of 3,000 buses. We thank the President, we thank the Yutong Company, and we thank above all the Noble, Brave, People of the People’s Republic of China.

Long live the People’s Republic of China! Long live the unity of our Peoples!

Sandino Lives On!

China-Peru friendship blossoms with Xi Jinping visit

From November 13-17, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Peru at the invitation of his Peruvian counterpart Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra, to attend the 31st APEC [Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation] Economic Leaders’ Meeting and to pay a state visit to the country. He then visited Brazil from November 17-21 at the invitation of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to attend the 19th G20 Summit and pay a state visit.

Immediately prior to his Peruvian visit, Xi published an article in the El Peruano newspaper entitled, “China-Peru Friendship: Setting Sail Toward an Even Brighter Future”.  He noted that:

“It is widely believed in the archaeology communities of China and other countries that the Chinese civilisation and the civilisations of the Americas were in fact created by descendants of the same ancestors at different periods and in different locations,” and added:

“Peruvian thinker José Carlos Mariátegui once said, ‘Spiritually and materially, China is closer to us than Europe. The psychology of our people is more Asian than Western.’ This is the ‘code of civilisation’ that explains the inseparable bond between immigrants of Chinese origin and the local people, forged through seamless integration and familial ties over the past 175 years.”

Xi’s reference to Mariátegui is of special significance. In his speech to our September 28 conference marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Dr. Francisco Dominguez noted:

In 1959, Lui Shaoqi, a leader of the revolution said, the Chinese revolution exerts a formidable ‘attraction for the peoples of backward countries that have suffered, or are suffering, imperialist oppression. They feel that they should also be able to do what the Chinese have done.’

A similar strategy had been put forward in Latin America by Peruvian Marxist, José Carlos Mariátegui as early as 1928. He argued that due to its backward nature, the nations in Latin America had a weak, small and dependent bourgeoisie, subordinated to the landed oligarchy and imperialism, therefore, unable and unwilling to undertake the carrying out of the national democratic tasks to modernise society to fully develop capitalism. Thus, the only way to carry through the national democratic tasks was by a socialist revolution led by the proletariat enjoying hegemony over the majority peasantry with land reform as the sine qua non condition of its success.

Mariátegui posited that the peasantry could play a revolutionary role based on its traditions of primitive agrarian communalism. For him, proletarian leadership meant a Marxist party to lead the revolutionised peasantry and the working class to carry out a socialist revolution to accomplish the national democratic tasks (especially land reform) and move simultaneously to the setting up a proletarian state.

In his introduction to the Selected Works of José Carlos Mariátegui, published by Iskra Books, editor and translator Christian Noakes writes:

Considered by many to be the father of Latin American Communism, he is celebrated for being the first person to utilise Marxist methods of analysis in order to better understand concrete reality in Peru and for carving a path to revolution based off of these particular historical conditions. As such, he was one of the first Latin American socialists to acknowledge the revolutionary potential of the peasantry and Indigenous peoples… His influence on revolutionaries in Nicaragua and Cuba has been particularly pronounced.

Xi Jinping goes on to state that: “Peru is one of the first Latin American countries to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China. For over 50 years, our bilateral relations have been progressing steadily… It is also among the first in Latin America to participate in cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). China has been Peru’s largest trading partner and largest export market for 10 consecutive years. Last year, Peru’s exports to China accounted for 36 percent of its total exports.” (China and Peru established diplomatic relations on November 2, 1971, during the anti-imperialist and progressive presidency of Juan Velasco Alvarado.)

As a major BRI project, Xi’s visit also saw the inauguration ceremony of Chancay Port: “This is not only an important project under Belt and Road cooperation, but also the first smart port in South America. The first phase of the project, when completed, will reduce the sea shipping time from Peru to China to 23 days, thus cutting logistics costs by at least 20 percent. It is expected to generate US$ 4.5 billion in yearly revenues for Peru and create over 8,000 direct jobs… The port’s development plan also includes establishing animal rescue services to fulfil its social responsibility for the rescue and protection of penguins, seals, and birds and to improve the environment of wetlands, beaches, and habitats.”

Continue reading China-Peru friendship blossoms with Xi Jinping visit

Xi Jinping visit to Peru and Brazil strengthens pivotal China-Latin America relationship

In the following article, commissioned by China Daily, Carlos Martinez provides a brief overview of Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Latin America, where he attended the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in Lima, paid a state visit to Peru, attended the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, and paid a state visit to Brazil.

Carlos highlights the significance of the newly-inaugurated Chancay Port, which is set to provide enormous economic benefit not only to Peru but all the countries of the region, and which will substantially strengthen Latin American integration and trans-Pacific trade relationships.

Carlos contrasts the mutually-beneficial relationship between China and Latin America – and indeed the Global South more generally – with that between the US and Latin America, the US’s supposed “back yard”. China’s approach of respect for sovereignty, support for development, and non-interference in other countries’ affairs “stands in stark contrast to the neoliberal hegemony of the ‘Washington Consensus’, with its wars, destabilisation, unilateral sanctions, economic coercion, blackmail, tariffs, nuclear bullying, military alliances and overseas military bases.”

A version of this article is expected to appear in China Daily Global Edition in the coming days.

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Lima, Peru, on 14 November to attend the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting and to pay a state visit at the invitation of Peruvian President Peru Dina Boluarte Zegarra.

While in Peru, Xi participated by video link in the opening of the Chancay Port, about 48 miles north of Lima. Chancay is a deep-water port with 15 berths, capable of accommodating some of the world’s largest ships. A shared project of China and Peru, built as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), it will serve as a crucial gateway linking Latin America and Asia, as well as promoting Latin American economic integration. Furthermore, it is Latin America’s first smart, green, low-carbon port, featuring advanced technologies such as automated cranes and electric driverless trucks.

With the opening of the port, average transportation time from South America to the Asian market will be reduced from 35 to 25 days. The Chancay Port will be a major boost for the regional economy, will create vast numbers of jobs, and will help to reduce poverty and inequality. In Peru alone, the port is expected to generate an additional 4.5 billion US dollars of revenue – just under 2 percent of the country’s GDP – and to create thousands of jobs.

Given that Peru shares borders with Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Bolivia, the port will serve as the starting point of a land-sea corridor between China and Latin America, giving rise to a dramatic increase in trade, investment, cooperation and friendship.

On 17 November, President Xi travelled from Peru to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to attend the 19th G20 Summit and to pay a state visit at the invitation of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Particularly under the Workers Party (PT) governments of Lula and Dilma Rousseff, China-Brazil relations have gone from strength to strength in recent years. China has been Brazil’s largest trading partner for the last 15 years, and is a major investor in Brazilian industry and agriculture. Furthermore, Brazil is the largest supplier of agricultural imports to China.

At the conclusion of their bilateral meeting on 20 November, Presidents Xi and Lula announced that China Brazil ties would be elevated to a “community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet”. Furthermore, the two sides will cooperate closely to align Brazil’s development strategy with the BRI.

Far from treating Brazil simply as a source of primary goods, China is increasingly cooperating with the Latin American giant on green energy, digital innovation, economic diversification, advanced infrastructure and industrial modernisation.

Unlike the West, which has always jealously guarded its technological supremacy, China’s vision of a global community of shared future involves encouraging sustainable development and modernisation throughout the Global South. With China’s support, the countries of Latin America, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific are starting to break the chains of underdevelopment that were imposed by the colonial and imperialist powers.

Aside from the growing economic relationship, Xi Jinping wrote in a signed article in Brazilian media that “China and Brazil, embracing our roles and responsibilities as major countries, have contributed to a multipolar world, promoted greater democracy in international relations, and injected positive energy into global peace and stability”.

China and Brazil have taken the lead in trying to reach a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and are aligned on attempting to bring about an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Both countries are pursuing sustainable development and modernisation, and both support a fair globalisation characterised by equality and common prosperity. In short, this is a relationship that is not only of great benefit to the two countries, but to the world as a whole.

In his speech at the G20 Summit, President Xi made a powerful call to “see the world as one community with a shared future, and shoulder our responsibility for history, take historical initiative and move history forward”. He insisted on the crucial importance of addressing global inequality, of supporting developing countries to achieve modernisation and pursue sustainable development, of supporting developing countries to adopt and integrate digital technologies, and of cooperating globally to tackle the environmental crisis.

The speech resonated loudly with the peoples of the Global South in particular. Xi’s words were a clear reiteration of China’s global vision of peace and common prosperity – which stands in stark contrast to the neoliberal hegemony of the ‘Washington Consensus’, with its wars, destabilisation, unilateral sanctions, economic coercion, blackmail, tariffs, nuclear bullying, military alliances and overseas military bases.

As the great Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro wrote in 2004, “China has objectively become the most promising hope and the best example for all Third World countries … an important element of balance, progress and safeguarding of world peace and stability”.

For that reason, the US is desperate to throw a spanner in the works; to disrupt the growing ties between China and Latin America, and between China and the Global South more generally. In October, Biden’s trade representative Katherine Tai said she “would encourage our friends in Brazil to look at the risks” of closer ties to China, hinting that the US would punish such unacceptable behaviour.

Shortly after the inauguration of the Chancay Port, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken turned up in Peru to announce a deal for 6 billion dollars’ worth of decades-old trains – presumably an unfortunate attempt to show that the US still has something to offer. A report in South China Morning Post remarked: “as Chinese President Xi Jinping inaugurated the US$3.5 billion Chancay port in Peru this month that promises to jump-start exports in the region and create a gateway to China, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken oversaw a ceremony just a few miles away to give US$6 million in 1980s diesel locomotives to the Andean nation… One was about the future, the other about the past.”

Donald Trump meanwhile is packing his cabinet with both China hawks and Latin America hawks, and will likely be even more aggressive in pressuring countries to toe the US line on China.

Such tactics will not work. The Financial Times reported on 20 November that “Joe Biden is losing to Xi Jinping in battle for Latin America”, noting that China is meeting the region’s enormous need for infrastructure investment.

The days of the Monroe Doctrine – enshrining the entire American super-continent as the US’s “sphere of influence” – are over. The nations of Latin America are asserting their sovereignty and are joining hands with the peoples of the world to reject hegemony and to create a future of global peace and common prosperity.

Xi Jinping meets with Mexican President Sheinbaum and Bolivian President Arce

Among the bilateral meetings that Chinese President Xi Jinping held with his counterparts on the sidelines of the recent 19th G20 Leaders’ Summit, held in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, particular significance should be attached to those with two of Latin America’s progressive leaders.

On November 18, President Xi met with Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, the recently elected President of Mexico.

Xi said that China and Mexico should continue to enhance exchanges, renew friendship, make good use of the highly complementary nature of the two economies, constantly advance practical cooperation and push for all-round development of bilateral relations in the new era. He once again congratulated Sheinbaum on becoming the first female president in the history of Mexico, and recalled his visit to Mexico in 2013, which he said had left a deep and unforgettable impression.

Sheinbaum expressed her pleasure in meeting Xi, noting that she fully agrees with Xi’s assessment of the relationship between the two countries. Although Mexico and China are far apart in distance, their ties are very close. She also expressed her gratitude for China’s generous and sincere assistance during Mexico’s difficult times, such as the hurricane disaster, which is testament to the friendship between the two peoples.

The following day, Xi met with Bolivian President Luis Arce and called on China and Bolivia to align the Belt and Road Initiative with Bolivia’s 2025 development plan.

Noting that China and Bolivia are good friends and good brothers, Xi said that bilateral relations have maintained a sound momentum of development in recent years. China supports Bolivia in independently exploring a development path suited to its national conditions and is willing to take the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Bolivia next year as an opportunity to carry forward the traditional friendship, deepen strategic mutual trust, expand win-win cooperation and lead the China-Bolivia strategic partnership to a new level.

The Chinese leader stressed that the two sides should strengthen exchanges between governments, legislatures and political parties as well as at local level, carry out in-depth exchanges on governance experience, and expand cooperation in infrastructure construction, plateau agriculture, green development and digital economy.

They should also deepen coordination within multilateral mechanisms, including the United Nations and BRICS, to promote unity, self-improvement and common development among Global South countries, he said, adding that China supports the integration of Latin America and stands ready to work with Bolivia to strengthen the building of such mechanisms as the China-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Forum.

Hailing the profound and brotherly friendship between Bolivia and China, Arce expressed gratitude to China for helping Bolivia in its fight against COVID-19 and its efforts to promote Bolivia’s economic and social development. China has made remarkable accomplishments in its modernisation process under Xi’s leadership, providing valuable experiences and guidance for the development of Bolivia and other countries, he added.

The following articles were originally published by the Xinhua News Agency.

Xi calls for all-round development of China-Mexico relations in new era

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Monday that China and Mexico should continue to enhance exchanges, renew friendship, make good use of the highly complementary nature of the two economies, constantly advance practical cooperation and push for all-round development of bilateral relations in the new era.

Xi made the remarks when meeting with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo on the sidelines of the 19th G20 Leaders’ Summit.

Continue reading Xi Jinping meets with Mexican President Sheinbaum and Bolivian President Arce

China and Brazil working to shape a just, multipolar world order

In the following article, published in China Daily on 19 November 2024, Efe Can Gürcan describes the history of the G20 and argues that Brazil’s presidency of the organisation – and its leadership of the G20 summit that took place this week – “could produce a pivotal transformation in the G20, placing stronger emphasis on Global South perspectives”.

Efe notes the complemenarities of Brazil and China’s development strategies. For example: “Brazil’s Ecological Transition Plan, which has garnered global attention for its ambitious goals and strongly resonates with China’s shared vision of an ecological civilization.” Meanwhile, China is Brazil’s largest trading partner, and Brazil is China’s principal source of agricultural imports.

On foreign policy issues, “both countries, as BRICS members, share similar positions … including on the Palestine and the Ukraine crises, and both advocate for a multipolar world based on fairness and justice.” As such, “by engaging more closely with China, Brazil could amplify its role in shaping a just, multipolar world order and in bringing the Global South’s voice to the forefront”.

The results of the G20 summit and the bilateral meetings between Presidents Xi Jinping and Lula da Silva certainly support the vision Efe outlines. Xi and Lula announced on Wednesday the elevation of their countries’ bilateral ties to a “community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet”, and committed to deepening coordination between the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Brazil’s development strategies.

The two “agreed that the relationship is at its best period in history, is growing stronger in global, strategic and long-term significance, and has become an exemplar of common progress, solidarity and cooperation between major developing countries” and that “China and Brazil should also step forward to their historic missions of leading efforts to safeguard the common interests of Global South countries and making the international order more just and equitable”, as reported by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

China and Brazil’s blossoming relationship is based on mutual respect, friendship and solidarity, and a shared determination to struggle against poverty, against war, for sustainable development, and for a multipolar world. This is a relationship that is not only of great benefit to the two countries, but to the world as a whole.

Dr Efe Can Gürcan is currently a Visiting Scholar at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and is a member of the Friends of Socialist China Britain Committee.

With the theme “Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet”, Brazil’s G20 presidency provides a unique chance to shape the global agenda at a pivotal time. This role is far from ceremonial — unlike organizations with a permanent secretariat or founding charter, the G20 relies on the country holding the presidency to set priorities, coordinate initiatives, and drive forward discussions. This time, Brazil’s leadership will steer this global forum, which represents over 85 percent of the world’s GDP, three-quarters of international trade, and two-thirds of the global population.

The G20’s history is rooted in responses to the crises of Western-led global capitalism. It emerged initially as a meeting of finance ministers in 1999. The G20 was a response to the devastating 1998 Asian financial crisis, which underscored how global economic turbulence could cascade across borders — especially impacting the developing world. Although the concept of a forum like the G20 emerged within Western circles, G7 leaders initially resisted it, preferring smaller, more private summits to maintain focus and control. Yet, the global call for a more inclusive cooperation mechanism grew louder in 2008, when the US-triggered global financial crisis exposed the limits of Western countries’ ability to stabilize markets and respond to crises alone. Holding its first summit of heads of state in 2008, the G20 ultimately evolved into a “crisis steering group”, which convenes the world’s largest economies, including emerging players that can no longer be sidelined in addressing global problems. As such, the G20’s purpose has expanded beyond finance to encompass pressing global issues such as climate change, economic inequality and sustainable development. Brazil, a key actor in Latin America’s historic “Pink Tide”, a leader in South-South cooperation and champion of multipolarity, is positioned to make the G20 more inclusive and effective in addressing these global challenges.

While the G7 — a smaller, more exclusive club of the wealthiest Western nations — was originally conceived to steer global governance, its legitimacy has waned over time. Its elitist composition, reflective of narrow Western interests, has led to criticism that it excludes key emerging economies. The G7’s exclusive nature was further cemented when it expelled Russia following the 2014 Ukraine crisis, reinforcing its status as a Western bloc rather than a truly global coalition aligned with the common destiny of humanity. The G20, on the other hand, includes a broader array of voices, providing a necessary balance and inclusivity in tackling today’s complex, borderless challenges, such as climate change and inequality.

Brazil’s leadership could produce a pivotal transformation in the G20, placing stronger emphasis on Global South perspectives and potentially transforming it from a North-South platform into a more democratic South-North forum. Brazil’s commitment to inclusive, sustainable development has been formalized in Brazil’s Ecological Transition Plan, which has garnered global attention for its ambitious goals and strongly resonates with China’s shared vision of an ecological civilization. In 2023, Brazil generated an impressive 91 percent of its electricity from clean sources, far surpassing global averages and even its own target of 84 percent by 2030. It also reduced Amazon deforestation to a six-year low, making strides in preserving the planet’s largest rainforest.

Beyond environmental leadership, Brazil is advocating for progressive reforms to reduce inequality and increase global governance inclusivity. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has proposed a 2-percent billionaire tax to combat global inequality and will likely renew his call for reforms to the United Nations, pushing for a more effective and representative Security Council, especially in light of recent failures to address urgent global crises, such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The proposals exhibit a striking synergy with China’s Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s continued economic stability and leadership status are closely tied to its relationship with China. China is Brazil’s largest export destination, and from 2007 to 2023, Chinese foreign direct investment in Brazil totaled $73.3 billion, with significant investment in Brazil’s electricity sector, which is crucial given Brazil’s recent energy challenges. China is also one of Brazil’s top agricultural export destinations, vital for an agribusiness sector that makes up almost 25 percent of Brazil’s GDP. President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit to Brazil during the G20 summit is an opportune moment to further enhance these economic ties and potentially encourage Brazil’s participation in the Belt and Road Initiative. Indeed, recent developments ahead of President Xi’s visit, such as Brazil’s offer to allow Shanghai-based satellite manufacturer SpaceSail access to a space base in the northeast of the country, hint at Brazil’s increasing openness to closer cooperation with China. Despite Brazil’s new tariffs imposed on Asian imports of iron, steel and fiber optic cable in October, this gesture toward collaboration shows Brazil’s recognition of China’s strategic importance.

The collaboration potential of the two countries strongly resonates in broader Latin America, where inadequate infrastructure and weak connectivity remain significant obstacles to regional development. The infrastructure gap in Latin America is vast, requiring an estimated $250 billion in investment annually. Brazil, as Latin America’s largest economy, has historically led efforts to promote infrastructure connectivity through the now-defunct Initiative for the Integration of the Regional Infrastructure of South America within the Union of South American Nations. However, sustaining Brazil’s own growth and supporting regional development will require more resources than Brazil currently has due to economic and political challenges that have affected its capacity since the mid-2010s. Chinese cooperation through the BRI could be key in meeting these infrastructure needs. Brazil’s hesitance to formally join the BRI risks stalling not only its infrastructure progress but also its role as a regional leader and its economy’s competitiveness on the global stage.

One cannot but notice a strong synergy between Brazil and China’s foreign policy objectives. Both countries, as BRICS members, share similar positions on major international issues, including the Palestine and the Ukraine crises, and both advocate for a multipolar world based on fairness and justice. This alignment complements Brazil’s G20 agenda, reinforcing its commitment to South-South cooperation and to building a community with a shared future for mankind. By engaging more closely with China, Brazil could amplify its role in shaping a just, multipolar world order and in bringing the Global South’s voice to the forefront.

China, multipolarity and the rise of the Global South

We are pleased to publish below an article by Francisco Domínguez, secretary of the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign (Britain) and Friends of Socialist China advisory group member, based on a speech he delivered to our September 28 conference celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

The article begins by highlighting some of the parallels between the Chinese Revolution and the 20th century revolutionary movement in Latin America, particularly with regard to the role of the peasantry and the relative weight of the struggle against colonialism and imperialism. Francisco draws in particular on the work of Peruvian Marxist, José Carlos Mariátegui, in the 1920s.

Francisco goes on to outline the impact of Hugo Chávez’s strategy of regional integration and its complementarity with the global strategy of multipolarity – in which China plays a key role – as well as the blossoming economic and diplomatic relationship between Latin America and the People’s Republic of China.

The article concludes: “The rise of Latin America with the Pink Tide as a dynamic and active component of the Global South is a clear manifestation both of multipolarity and the region’s desire to play an leading role in building a Global Community of Shared Future.”

Introduction

The Chinese Revolution has reached 75 years and its extraordinary economic development has turned into the second largest economy in the world on the basis of impressive technological advances and becoming a highly beneficial hub to the Global South, which is the current manifestation of multipolarity. We examine how Latin America embarked on a process of progressive transformation and regional integration (known as the Pink Tide) leading, since about 1999, to enter into a growing collaborative and multifaceted relationship with the People’s Republic of China.

Significance of the Chinese Revolution

In 1957 Mao Zedong identified three key forces on a world scale: US imperialism engaged in policies and wars of aggression; other developed capitalist countries; and countries fighting for national independence and national liberation movements in Asia, Africa and Latin America. […] As for the oppressed nations’ liberation movements and countries fighting to gain national independence, the Party advocated giving them active support and developing extensive friendly relations with them. Regarding capitalist countries other than the U.S., the Party’s view was that China should also win them over and develop friendly relations with them. As to the United States, the Party advocated determined opposition to U.S. armed aggression and threats to China, on the one hand, while still striving for peaceful co-existence with the it and settling disputes between the two countries through peaceful consultation, on the other.[1]

The novelty of the Chinese Revolution, already a feature of the Russian Revolution, was an immense peasant base in a country where in 1949 there was hardly a working class. Well over 85% of the country was made of peasants and where the working-class movement had been destroyed by a combination of the Kuomintang’s brutal repression in 1925-1927, followed by the Japanese invasion (1931-1949). The proletariat had almost disappeared.

Thus, the Chinese Communist Party mobilised the peasantry endowing that mobilization with proletariat leadership and revolutionary dynamic, which, by demolishing its feudal structures, would lead to the accomplishment of the democratic tasks of the revolution. However, its consolidation required to move simultaneously to the undertaking of the socialist tasks by primarily start the construction of a proletarian state that rested on the power of the People’s Liberation Army under the leadership of the CCP. The latter gave the revolution its socialist character.

In this regard in 1959, Lui Shaoqi, a leader of the Revolution said, the Chinese revolution exerts a formidable “attraction for the peoples of backward countries that have suffered, or are suffering imperialist oppression. They feel that they should also be able to do what the Chinese have done.”[2]

A similar strategy had been put forward in Latin America by Peruvian Marxist, José Carlos Mariátegui as early as 1928.[3] He argued that due to its backward nature, the nations in Latin America had a weak, small and dependent bourgeoisie, subordinated to the landed oligarchy and imperialism, therefore, unable and unwilling to undertake the carrying out of the national democratic tasks to modernise society to fully develop capitalism. Thus, the only way to carry through the national democratic tasks was by a socialist revolution led by the proletariat enjoying hegemony over the majority peasantry for land reform as the sine qua non condition of its success.

Continue reading China, multipolarity and the rise of the Global South

Venezuelan ambassador: Venezuela and China are pioneering nations in the construction of a multipolar world

We are very pleased to publish below the text of the statement delivered by His Excellency Ambassador Félix Plasencia González, Head of Mission of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to the United Kingdom, at the conference held in London on Saturday 28 September to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Ambassador Plasencia started by welcoming the audience to Bolívar Hall, a historic venue in Central London which is owned by the Venezuelan Embassy, and “a space of open doors for brotherhood and solidarity between our peoples”.

Plasencia was formerly Venezuela’s ambassador to China and knows the country well. After congratulating the Chinese people on their remarkable achievements over the last 75 years, he went on to discuss China-Venezuela relations and the role the two countries are playing in global politics.

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the People’s Republic of China are pioneering nations in the construction of a multipolar and multicentric world, where cooperation, solidarity, and respect for international law play a fundamental role.

Comrade Plasencia noted that, while the US and its allies have been subjecting Venezuela to illegal and arbitrary unilateral coercive measures, “China has consolidated itself as a true friend and a beacon of hope for sovereign nations and governments still striving for full independence”.

He concluded by expressing Venezuela’s willingness to continue expanding cooperation and solidarity with China to ever-wider areas of life, “to contribute to the well-being of our peoples, the development of both nations, and to build strengths that will help create a fairer, more inclusive, peaceful, and equitable multipolar world”.

On behalf of the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro Moros, the People and the Bolivarian Government, I am pleased to extend to you a warm greeting, as well as the most cordial welcome to the Bolívar Hall, a space of open doors for brotherhood and solidarity between our peoples, provided by the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in London.

It is a great honour for me, as a former Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic to the People’s Republic of China, to be able to accompany our sister nation, China, in this warm and close gathering organised by social movements and friends of the solidarity in London and the United Kingdom, to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

This significant date for the Chinese people and government reminds us of the greatness of the Chinese nation, which we in Latin America and particularly in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, recognise for its millennia of historical greatness and contributions to the development of humanity.

Likewise, on this day we are called to reflect on the profound transformations that the People’s Republic of China has undergone over the last 75 years, during which historic achievements have been made to improve the quality of life for the Chinese people.

China has been remarkably successful in achieving major goals, such as the eradication of extreme poverty, a milestone that fills all our developing nations with hope.

Continue reading Venezuelan ambassador: Venezuela and China are pioneering nations in the construction of a multipolar world