China in Latin America

A report by the National Endowment for Democracy warns:

“Together with Beijing’s attempts to project an image of itself as an accommodating power that shares similar development and modernization goals with the developing world, this soft power approach has enabled China to earn the sympathies of political elites across Latin America. The perception among these enthusiastic political elites that China would make an attractive partner rests primarily on its economic development over the past four decades, its ability to weather the global financial crisis virtually untouched, and its ever-growing influence in the international arena. The prospect that China can provide economic opportunities that other international partners cannot offer, along with the United States’ diminishing presence in the region, is also a decisive factor behind Beijing’s new, fresh, and friendly image in Latin America.”