BRI and Latin America: Analysis of Political, Economic, and Cultural Development in the period 2013–2022

Abstract

In 2018, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) officially started to be part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This may not only influence the countries that are economically part of the project but also the political and cultural areas, due to the exchanges that are meant to achieve the initiative’s goals. BRI also connects to current and potential trade and the way such relations could contribute to the incorporation of LAC into the initiative. This paper aims to analyze the influence that the Belt and Road Initiative has had on the political, economic, and cultural development of Latin America from 2013 to 2022. To do so, this paper will first identify the diplomatic relations between Latin America and China and their contribution to the evolution of BRI in the region. Subsequently, it will characterize the development of the Sino-Latin American trade relations and how they have been influenced by the region’s incorporation into the project. Finally, it will describe the cultural interactions between China and Latin America and the way that they represent a benefit or challenge for the optimal performance of BRI in the region. The research used a qualitative method, with a descriptive scope and inductive logic. Moreover, the instrument of the collection is the reading card, and the instrument of analysis is the documentary analysis. Results show that BRI has brought China and Latin America closer, encouraging the participation of the Asian country in more and more projects that have been developed in the country, nonetheless, it has contributed to the widening of the economic gap in Latin America due to the asymmetric relation. Undoubtedly, the Sino-LAC relation continues to strengthen the political and cultural scenarios, bringing the two distant geographic spaces closer.