The Risks to Latin America from the Breakdown of US-China Relations

Abstract

China has become an important dimension of US relations with Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). In the last twenty years, China has increased its trade, investments, financial, and political ties with the region, an area of US influence for most of the twentieth century. As has been the case globally, the Trump administration has increased its pressure against China in LAC. The Brazilian experience shows that countries in the region are being pressured to make policy choices that effectively require them to renounce their own interests in response to Washington’s demands. Both the United States and China are crucial partners to LAC and the possibility of being forced to choose between them is among the main strategic risks the region faces.