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China drums up support for global security push in Latin America as US looks to Asia
- Uruguay and Nicaragua endorse an initiative proposed by Xi Jinping last month
- Security partnerships with Beijing are a new idea for the region, analyst says
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China’s foreign minister went on the geopolitical offensive in Latin America last week, promoting his country’s proposed “Global Security Initiative” in the US’ backyard as Washington sought to shore up ties in Asia.
In phone calls with his counterparts from Uruguay, Nicaragua and Ecuador, Wang Yi said China opposed efforts by “some countries” to use ideology to divide the international community and it had no geopolitical considerations when working with Latin America.
Chinese President Xi Jinping first touted the initiative at the annual Boao Forum for Asia in April, calling for cooperation and respect for national sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference with the internal politics of other countries.
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Xi also said the initiative opposed political factions and upheld “indivisible security”, a Russia-backed concept that a country’s security cannot be isolated from others in the region.
Little has been said about how it will be implemented, but the initiative is widely seen as a rebuke to the West’s coordinated sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
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Joe Biden arrives in South Korea for a tour of Asia to strengthen US ties in the Indo-Pacific
Joe Biden arrives in South Korea for a tour of Asia to strengthen US ties in the Indo-Pacific
The foreign ministers of Uruguay and Nicaragua both said on Friday that they welcomed the initiative on maintaining global security.
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