The China Signal - December 30
5th Sino-Latin American Defence Forum, 15th China-LAC Business Summit, media influence programs
G’day, and welcome to The China Signal, the last edition for 2022. This week, coverage of the fifth Sino-Latin American Defence Forum and 15th China-LAC Business Summit, an example of Beijing’s media influence initiatives in Guyana, plus more.
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This is being sent from the Colombian countryside, where I’m enjoying some down time with friends and family. If you’re in Bogotá next week and would like to catch up, please let me know.
Thanks for your readership in 2022, which has seen the newsletter double in size and provide valuable insight to investors, diplomats, and journalists globally. As always, if you have any comments or suggestions, please do get in touch.
I’d also like to thank The China Signal’s research interns for the year Ignacio Albe, Richard Puppin, Nohelia Rivera Matias, and Victoria Vogrincic. The newsletter wouldn’t have been possible without their support. We will be back in mid-January, and until then, I hope you continue to enjoy the holiday break!
Defense ✈️
Broader Latin America 🏝🏔
On December 12, defense ministers and officials from China and 24 Latin American countries participated remotely in the Fifth China-Latin America Defense Forum. This is a sub-forum of the China-CELAC forum, established to foster “ties of friendship of cooperation” between China and the region.
Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe delivered a keynote speech, urging China and LAC countries to build a “stronger security barrier,” and to “form a new pattern of omni-dimensional, wide-ranging, and multi-channel defense cooperation.”
This high-level defense forum provides professional military education to Latin American and Caribbean military personnel, educational exchanges between military academies, and Chinese tech company engagement with military institutions. Some of these Chinese companies include China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO, see TCS March 4 re: Argentina), China Electronics Technology Corporation (CETC), Corporation of the industry of the Aviation of China (AVIC), and Poly Technologies, who participate in regional military trade shows such as Fidae in Chile, LAAD in Brazil, and SitDef in Peru.
The last defense forum was held on October 29th, 2018. China’s Ministry of Defense described the forum as an embodiment of “China’s sincere desire to develop China-Latin America defense and military relations.” (VV)
Trade and Investment 📊
Ecuador 🇪🇨 / Broader Latin America 🏝🏔
On December 15, the 15th China-Latin American and the Caribbean Business Summit issued the “Guayaquil Initiative”. According to Chinese state sponsored media outlets, the Summit involved 300 business leaders from China and the LAC, with an agenda focused on interconnectivity, innovation, green development, digital economy, and social responsibility. The text of the Guayaquil Initiative and the participant list is not publicly available.
The Summit was inaugurated with a video message by Xi Jinping, and attended by Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso and ministers of foreign affairs, and trade and investment. Lasso and the president of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Ren Hongbin, met to discuss ongoing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations, with the Ecuadorian government saying negotiations were in their “final phase” (see TCS December 17, 2022). (RP)
Diplomacy 🕊
Brazil 🇧🇷
Brazil's Lula to visit U.S., China in early 2023 | Reuters - December 14, 2022
Brazil President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is expected to make official trips to the United States and China in his first three months in office, incoming Foreign Relations Minister Mauro Vieira said on Wednesday.
This news comes after a successful trip earlier this month by U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who traveled to Brazil to meet with President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and members of his transition team. The leaders discussed the importance of continued cooperation on issues of mutual interest, including climate change, food security, promoting inclusion, democracy, and international stability, and managing regional migration.
Vieira previously mentioned that Lula is eager to refocus Brazil’s foreign policy to reconnect with its “traditional partners,” the United States and China. (VV)
Guatemala 🇬🇹 - Taiwan 🇹🇼
Guatemala plans March summit for 'Taiwan-friendly' countries | Reuters | December 19, 2022
Guatemala plans to hold a summit in March for senior officials from "Taiwan-friendly" countries and hopes Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will attend, the Guatemalan ambassador in Taipei said on Monday.
Guatemala is one of only 14 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, and one of three allies left in Central America, alongside Honduras and Belize.
Tsai, who visited Guatemala in 2017, did not say in a statement from her office about the meeting if she would take up the invitation.
Dominican Republic 🇩🇴
~ Article above is paraphrased from Spanish ~
The Dominican Republic has ratified a series of air agreements with Uruguay and China that aim to establish civil air transport services and boost tourism from Uruguay and China. (NRM)
Media Influence 🗞️
Guyana 🇬🇾
Guyanese journalist lauds benefits from Chinese programme - Stabroek News - December 16, 2022
For Guyanese editor Samuel Sukhnandan, the recent China International Press Communication Centre (CIPCC) program provided an opportunity that will have an impact on his writing as it relates to China.
In brief remarks at the Chinese Embassy yesterday, Ambassador Guo Haiyan noted that news coverage of China is sometimes misleading and CIPCC is a programme that simply ensures that articles on China are balanced.
According to Sukhnandan, the programme gave him a better understanding of China and its politics and he is glad to have been provided the opportunity to make connections with members of the Chinese Press. This he says would help prevent the publishing of any misleading articles as he would easily be able to contact locals on the ground to distinguish fact from fiction, resulting in balanced news coverage on his part.
The CIPCC program is a Chinese government initiative, sponsored by the China Public Diplomacy Association (CPDA) . The program has existed since 2014. Its most recent Latin American intake involved approximately 90 journalists in a four month fellowship, where the participants traveled to different Chinese provinces. The same initiative was implemented in Africa in August 2022. (NRM)
Love your newsletter. Thanks for the great info!