Zhao Lijian Photo: VCG

China's Foreign Ministry on Thursday harshly refuted claims made by a senior US official at the Summit of Americas about China's cooperation with Latin American countries, saying that China's cooperation with Latin American and Caribbean countries are mutually beneficial and sustainable, whereas the US' cooperation aimed at containing other countries is doomed to fail.

China carries out practical cooperation with Latin American and Caribbean countries in economic, trade and other fields on the basis of respecting each other's needs and interests, which has played positive role in boosting regional economic recovery, Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said at a regular press briefing.

Zhao was responding to a question about remarks made by US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, who said that the US "will be putting specific dollars into producing tangible results that matter to people," when talking about the practical impact of what the deliverables from the Summit of the Americas from the US will mean for the hemisphere. 

"It is significantly more impactful on the actual lives and livelihoods of the people of this region than the kinds of extractive projects that China has been invested in," Sullivan said on Wednesday.

Sullivan said that the US will add up to a major investment for the hemisphere. White House officials have also stated that the best way to for the US to counter Chinese interests in the region was to build an economic vision for the Americas. 

"China-Latin America cooperation has played an important role in the regional recovery and the improvement of local people's livelihoods. It shows that China-Latin America cooperation has strong resilience and internal driving force," said Zhao.

Zhao stressed that Latin American and Caribbean countries have the right to independently choose their development paths and partners. The so-called cooperation carried out by the US for its own selfish interests to exclude and contain other countries is a great disrespect to Latin American countries, he said.  

"It will not be recognized by countries in the region, let alone bring real benefits to people in the region, and will inevitably fail. China always adheres to the principles of mutual respect, equality, win-win cooperation, openness and inclusiveness," the spokesperson noted.

Zhao cited remarks of Mexican Foreign Affairs Minister Marcelo Ebrard, who said on Tuesday that it is in the strategic interest of Mexico to postulate the prevalence of multilateralism, non-interventionism and international law. 

In an article published in Mexican daily Excelsior, Ebrard wrote that the so-called democratic clause, which the US cited as the reason for not inviting three countries to the regional summit, is invoked only when it benefits US interests.

"President defends the principle of non-intervention and accuses the contradictions of the principle of selective intervention. He does it for a matter of values and principles, but also as a strategic calculation and with a view to building an unprecedented arrangement of political and economic relations in the American continent for the 21st century," Ebrard said.

Against the backdrop of COVID-19, China-Latin America economic and trade cooperation has grown, with two-way trade exceeding $450 billion for the first time in 2021, according to Zhao.

Global Times