China in Latin America: The Ineffective Empire amid the Monroe Doctrine?

• In Event: US Militarism and Militarization in World Historical Perspective

Abstract

There are two parallel and connected geopolitical narratives that have dominated the beginning of the twenty-first century: 1) the relative decline of the United States since the post-Cold War period, more prominently after the crisis of 2007-2008 (Arrighi 2007; Arrighi and Silver; 1999); 2) the rise of China as an economic, political, and military power in the contemporary world-system. The dispute among the world's two biggest economies is increasingly manifested in different domains, such as trade, investments, and the control of strategic technological capabilities. Since the 2000s, China has significantly reshaped the political economy of Latin America. China's share of the region's exports grew from less than 2% in 2000 to substantial levels by 2025, with trade expanding at an average annual rate of 31% between 2000 and 2008. By 2025, bilateral trade exceeded $500 billion according to Chinese government figures, with projections suggesting it could reach $700 billion by 2035. Between 2000 and 2024, trade with China grew fortyfold, while both intra-regional trade and trade with the U.S. declined. Today, China is Latin America's second-largest trading partner after the United States and ahead of the European Union. However, on January 2, 2025, just hours before a U.S. military intervention, China's Special Envoy for Latin America, Qiu Xiaoqi, met with deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro at Miraflores Palace in Caracas. China-Latin American relations open a series of questions: are Chinese economic ties with Latin America translating into political power? Why does China's presence in the region seem so ineffective at securing even its own interests? This article aims to discuss the emergence of China as an economic global power and its presence in Latin America considering the recent U.S. interventions in what Washington considers its “backyard”. This research compares the cases of Venezuela, Panama, and Argentina tracking loans, trade, and Chinese cooperation in the region.

Author

• Maria Jose Haro Sly, Johns Hopkins University