Hello, and welcome to the Latin America Weekly newsletter! In this issue: Argentina closer to the Chinese. Another cabinet for Castillo in Peru. Anti-inflation is the name of the game in Colombia.
Argentina is now biggest Belt and Road partner in Latin America
Chinese influence in Latin America continues to expand, as Argentina signed on to become the latest partner of President Xi Jinping’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Why it matters. Argentina is the largest Latin American economy to do so.
New Silk Road. The BRI is a global scheme to export Chinese capital and technology and develop infrastructure projects throughout the world.
- So far, 145 countries have signed a memorandum of understanding with China to join the initiative — though most of the signatories come from Africa, Asia (with the notable exception of India), and Eastern Europe. In Latin America, China has found 20 partners.
Latin America. The project has found it harder to make inroads in regions with larger U.S. influence. None of Latin America’s four largest economies (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia) were on board, which Argentina changed last week.
- Speaking to the local press, Zhou Zhiwei, an expert on Latin American studies...