Spotlight: Closer ties with China can alter LatAm's economic course: experts

Forging closer ties with China can effectively change Latin America's economic condition as "a mere exporter of raw materials," according to Venezuelan experts.

Following the recent publication of China's second policy paper on Latin America and the Caribbean, analysts agree that Beijing has bolstered its commitment to the region with a comprehensive shared development scheme that goes beyond trade, finance and economy.

"No one has ever proposed anything like this to Latin America," said political observer Jose Antonio Egido.

"It sets the foundation for great regional development, thanks to China's proposed win-win ties of cooperation, which could change the course of economic development in what's left of the 21st century," Egido told Xinhua recently.

Given the global economic crisis, "what Latin American and Caribbean countries need is to supply more than just resources," said Egido.

To that end, "China is offering a partnership in which the region can stop being a mere exporter of raw materials," Egido said.

Closer China-Latin America ties will translate into concrete projects in the areas of infrastructure, services and transportation, and lead to safer and more reliable financing schemes for regional countries.

In keeping with the new policy paper, cooperation should also expand to other areas, such as customs, defense and security, military and police, innovation and technology.

Spanish-born journalist Fernando Casado, a naturalized Venezuelan citizen, underscored the importance China attaches to its second policy paper concerning the Latin America.

"I believe it is a forum that, thanks to China's presence, is going to grow stronger, because the entire region sees in China the opportunity to expand their own economies and diversify their trade ties," said Casado.

What's more, said Casado, the policy paper indicates the geoeconomic and geopolitical center of world power is shifting from the Atlantic, which was controlled by the Western nations and marked by the North-South inequality, toward the Asia-Pacific.

This emerging "multilateralism" will lead to greater equality in international relations and greater balance between the different regions of the globe, he said.

"The geography of power is going to begin to change ... shifting from North to South and ... giving way to more equality," Casado told Xinhua.

Both analysts also highlighted the policy paper's call for stepped up international coordination to achieve concrete goals, such as meeting the targets set by the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda for 2030. Endi