theDrahos

In the days leading up to the Jan. 8-9 China-Celac Forum ministerial meeting in Beijing, government officials from 30 Latin American and Caribbean nations met with their Chinese counterparts to sign many bilateral agreements covering infrastructure development, industry, energy, tourism, science, and technology, among other areas.

In addition, the four heads of state who make up the Celac leadership “quartet”—Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, Ecuador’s Rafael Correa, Costa Rica’s Luis Solis, and Bahamas’s premier Perry Christie, all were official state guests of Chinese President Xi Jinping, and signed important bilateral agreements. Highlights include:

Venezuela: China will make $20 bn. available in investments in Venezuela, which is intended to help shore up Venezuela’s economy, battered by the oil price plunge and an offensive by the imperial Project Democracy apparatus to destabilize that nation. In a meeting between Xi and Nicolas Maduro, Xi said he hoped Venezuela would access the bilateral financing mechanisms already existing in the China-Venezuela High-Level Mixed Committee to channel more funds to energy, mining, agriculture, and industry. Maduro also invited China to participate in the next phase of bilateral cooperation and to explore new areas of cooperation, such as industry, energy, science-technology, and financing. Maduro met the heads of the China Development Bank and Bank of China, among other agencies, to “strengthen a series of financing deals approved on this visit,” Maduro said.

Ecuador: In meetings with Xi Jinping and other government officials, Rafael Correa, who will now take up the post of Celac’s President Pro-Tem for the coming year, concretized a $7.5 bn. credit line from China. Addressing the inaugural session today, Correa stressed that relations between the region and China will help bring about changes in the global order.

“The current order is not only unjust, but in many examples immoral. Some arbitrary organizations are not fair and have been used as political tools for a long period of time,” said Correa. He noted that China has huge cash resources, while Celac nations have both the natural and human resources China needs. Many agreements were signed.

Costa Rica: Agreements were signed between Xi and President Luis Solis in economic technology, special economic zones, animal inspection and quarantine, cultural exchange, and tourism, and they announced the creation of the China-Costa Rica Strategic Partnership of Equality, Mutual Trust and Win-Win Cooperation. Solis, who is an enthusiastic proponent of the inter-oceanic Nicaragua Canal, indicated his eagerness to receive Chinese investment to develop Costa Rica’s industry and infrastructure.

Bahamas: PM Perry Christie signed agreements for cooperation in infrastructure, investments, trade, culture, tourism, and sports.