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China-Latin America relations

China-Latin America relations
News, features and updates on Beijing's relations with various Latin American nations, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Paraguay, Peru, Venezuela and more.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announces sanctions on Cuba’s state-owned oil and gas company Union Cuba-Petroleo on Thursday. Photo: Reuters
Mainland China

US targets Cuba oil giant as Beijing and Havana deepen party ties

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announces sanctions on Union Cuba-Petroleo after Havana and Beijing hold positive bilateral talks.

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Artificial intelligence

Nvidia denies Latin America role in China chip smuggling

US-China relations

Trump urged to press Xi on Chinese money laundering tied to Mexican cartels

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US-China relations

The new Panama? Why Nicaragua could be next front in US-China influence battle

Beijing could move to build an alternative to the Panama Canal in Nicaragua, before the US gets involved, scholar warns.

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A vessel transits the Panama Canal. China could move to build a rival waterway in Nicaragua, as it looks to counter pressure from the United States. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

China says US ‘invented’ terrorism charges to justify Cuba blockade

Foreign ministry rebutted Marco Rubio’s claim that Cuba sponsors terrorism and demanded an end to US sanctions on the island.

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Americas and the Caribbean

Opinion | China’s economic inroads in Latin America are hitting political walls

China’s economic gains in the Americas are real, but Donald Trump’s return to the White House shows that political success is another story.

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Brazil

‘I will sell to someone else’: Brazil’s Lula hits back at US after China beef win

The president also branded Rubio a ‘frustrated Latino’ and vowed Brazil would ‘not be treated as an insignificant little republic’ by the US.

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Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks in Brasília as trade tensions with the US escalate. Photo: Reuters
European Union

China opens door to all Brazilian beef, then slams it with a 55% surtax

Recognition lifts a long-standing sanitary barrier, but an import quota in force since January caps how far Brazilian beef sales can grow.

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Mainland China

US’ Cuba-China fears, Panama pressure: Latin America relations reads

From Argentina’s shrinking China lifeline to the US’ Cuba worries, here are highlights from the SCMP’s foreign correspondents in May 2026.

Brazil

China urges Brazil to jointly repel ‘external challenges’ as ties deepen

Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira meets Wang Yi and Han Zheng as Brazil seeks key stable fertiliser supply amid US-Iran conflict.

Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira meets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Monday. Photo: Xinhua
Panama

Panama rejects US pressure claims as it seeks to ease China tensions

Panamanian president looks to defuse issues with Beijing as South American country attempts to renew key China maritime agreement.

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Containers sit at the Balboa terminal, formerly run by CK Hutchison’s Panama Ports, after the Panama government ordered the occupation of the port following a court ruling that the concession was unconstitutional. Photo: AP
Cuba

As US pressures Cuba, Beijing holds talks with Havana on agriculture

Chinese support includes rice shipments and diplomatic backing as Trump administration ramps up sanctions and rhetoric.

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Austria

Panama encourages dialogue at UN as canal tensions with China simmer

Panama’s foreign minister uses UN speech to help defuse tension after deterioration in Panama-China relations due to canal dispute.

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Cuba

Cuba clash, Putin visits Beijing, Xi may go to North Korea

This week: China and the US trade barbs over Cuba, Putin fails to get gas pipeline deal at Xi summit, and retail sales growth hits three-year low. Next week: Xi may travel to North Korea, defence officials gather for Shangri-La Dialogue, new airport terminal and more.

Former Cuban president Raul Castro at a 2025 May Day rally in Havana. Photo: Reuters
Florida

US casts Cuba as China-linked security threat while still pushing for talks

Washington portrays Havana as a national security risk tied to Beijing and Moscow while insisting diplomacy remains possible.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the media before boarding his plane at Homestead Air Base in Miami on Thursday. Photo: AP
United States

China slams US over Castro charges and ‘unauthorised’ sanctions on Cuba

Beijing says it supports ‘Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and national dignity’ after charges over downed planes.

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Venezuela

US charges Raul Castro as Trump administration ratchets up pressure on Cuba

Historic murder charges against 94-year-old former leader mark the first time Washington has criminally pursued a Castro brother.

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Russia

US plans to charge Raul Castro increases Trump administration’s pressure on Cuba

US Justice Department preparing to indict ageing Cuban leader on Wednesday over the shooting down of two aircraft three decades ago.

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Former Cuban president Raul Castro attends a May Day rally in Havana, Cuba, on May 1. Photo: Reuters
Argentina

How a US$5 billion Chinese lifeline to Argentina shrank to almost nothing

Central bank records show the swap balance fell to US$675 million as Washington pressed Buenos Aires to wind it down.

Brazil

China restores US beef trade amid Trump-Xi summit, alarming Brazilian exporters

Beijing’s renewal of import licences for US beef plants comes as Brazil nears its annual quota cap and scrambles for alternative markets.

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Paraguay

Beijing calls Paraguay leaders willing ‘chess pieces’ after disputed Taiwan trip

Beijing’s anger over President Santiago Pena’s Taipei trade visit comes as Taiwan issue looms large at this week’s Trump-Xi summit.

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Paraguayan President Santiago Pena and Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te meet in Taipei on May 8. Photo: Kyodo
Diplomacy

Opinion | Latin America is reassessing the benefits of warm ties with Beijing

From Honduras to Cuba and Venezuela, leaders are taking a more transactional view of what relations with Beijing really bring.

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Honduran President Nasry Asfura, seen during general elections in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on November 30, has ordered a review of deals with Beijing after Tegucigalpa cut ties with Taipei. Photo: AP
India

Lula won’t sideline China on rare earths, tells Trump refining stays in Brazil

In a three-hour White House meeting on Thursday, Brazil’s president pitched his country’s minerals to all comers.

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Japan

US targets Cuba nickel operation in move affecting China-linked supply chains

Marco Rubio revealed sanctions on Thursday, escalating Trump administration’s pressure campaign against Havana’s military-controlled economy.

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Argentina

China pours US$6.1b into Brazil, making it Beijing’s top global investment

Chinese miners, carmakers and tech firms are fanned out across 20 states, putting a dent in Washington’s own push throughout the region.

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A BYD vehicle is seen on the production line at the Chinese company’s new electric-vehicle factory in Brazil in October 2025. Photo: Reuters
Panama

Panama minister slams China ship crackdown, tells deputies in Beijing: push back

Foreign minister says court ruling must not be used as leverage against Panama’s merchant fleet as ship detentions mount.

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A Panamanian-flagged vessel transits the Panama Canal in March; dozens of such ships have faced heightened inspections in Chinese ports amid rising tensions. Photo: Reuters
Mexico

China consul in Tijuana warns against protectionism as USMCA review nears

Fu Xinrong pitched Beijing’s model of shared modernisation to Mexican business leaders, weeks before a contentious USMCA review.

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Mainland China

Beijing backs Cuba, Chile reveals smuggling ring: Latin America relations reads

From a smuggling ring in Chile to rare earth wrangling in Brazil, here are highlights from the SCMP’s foreign correspondents in April 2026.

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