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Map of PRC and Latin America

Chinas economic and diplomatic presence in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has expanded dramatically since the turn of the century. Beyond unprecedented commercial and investment ties, including the extension of its Belt and Road Initiative to the region, China has sought to deploy soft power to advance its standing. Increasingly, China deploys concerted public relations and communication strategies to shape how it is perceived across LAC, its sub-regions and countries. However, little attention has been given to Chinas proactive messaging, or to the impact of these efforts on elite and public perceptions of the emerging superpower across the region.泭

To better illuminate Chinas efforts to shape perceptions of its growing role in LAC, CLALS has undertaken a research and public information initiative, together with researchers based in the region. With a focus on Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and El Salvador, this project examines Chinese messaging in LAC, with respect to three topical domains of engagement: COVID-19 public health diplomacy, information and communications technology, and public diplomacy.泭

This study has generated a comprehensive literature review in English and Spanish, synthesizing the state of knowledge and debate regarding Chinas engagement with LAC, and a report on a survey of regional opinion leaders changing perceptions of China and its role in the region.泭The project泭synthesized泭public opinion and other relevant data concerning these countries and domains of interest, including in Mandarin, to produce a comprehensive report in English and Spanish summarizing a state-of-the-art understanding of Chinese efforts of strategic communication in LAC. The泭results of this study were disseminated in a variety of modes, including maps, visual timelines, infographics, blogposts, webinars and podcasts, and promoted across a range of social media platforms.

This project was泭led by CLALS Director泭Eric Hershberg, joined by泭賊棗莉泭插梭莉娶棗, CLALS Research Associate Professor;泭Luiza Duarte, CLALS Research Fellow; and泭two investigators based in Argentina,泭Andr矇s Serbinand泭Andrei Serbin Pont, President and Executive Director of the泭Coordinadora Regional de Investigaciones Econ籀micas y Sociales泭(CRIES), respectively. This research was泭funded through a cooperative agreement between the泭Institute for War &泭Peace Reporting泭泭and the泭U.S. Department of State.泭

Publications

Complementing this initiatives report,泭Communicating Influence: Chinas Messaging in Latin America and the Caribbean,泭Center researchers and experts outside 51勛圖 have prepared four country case studies of Chinas engagement with Latin America. These include analyses of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and El Salvador.

Latin America-China Relations: A Review of Recent Literature (2010-2020)

One outcome of this project is a state-of-the-art review泭of the previous decade's literature on the relationship between China and Latin America and the Caribbean. Written by Andr矇s Serbin, President of the Coordinadora Regional de Investigaciones Econ籀micas y Sociales (CRIES), this survey compares the approaches taken by academic communities in China, Latin America, and the United States when analyzing Chinese-Latin American relations, in order to highlight the distinct scholarly paradigms泭and epistemic starting points used by each, and to differentiate emerging Latin American scholarly perspectives from those in the English-speaking world and in China.

Infographics

We have also generated a set of almost two dozen泭, which convey the results of data collected over the course of this project illuminating the ongoing evolution of Chinas strategic communication with Latin America and the Caribbean. These infographics address a range of complementary topics which, taken together, provide both snapshots and timelines for key developments regarding Chinas increasingly multifaceted messaging approach over the previous decade. They summarize information about such arenas as public diplomacy (including Covid-19 diplomacy), visits of high-ranking dignitaries, the promotion of Chinese culture, increasing use of social media, the advancement of Chinese information and communications technology as part of regional networks, and the several ways China now seeks to place favorable content in traditional print and other media throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

Short Video About the Communicating Influence Project

This video provides a project overview, situating the rise of China within the regional context of Latin America and the Caribbean. It explores the project's main areas of attention, including China's engagements with the region around COVID-19 public health diplomacy, information and communications technology, and public diplomacy, and summarizes important project takeaways.

Podcast

Episode 1: Information and Communications Technology

Hosted by CLALS Director Eric Hershberg, this episode泭discusses the advancement of China's Digital Silk Road in Latin America and the Caribbean, characterized by growing media cooperation between China and countries in the region and expanding use of Chinese information and communication technology, including 5G services. Guests include Margaret Myers, Director of the Asia & Latin America Program at the Inter-American Dialogue; CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte; and Patricio Giusto, Executive Director of the Sino-Argentinian Observatory.

Episode 2: COVID-19 Public Health Diplomacy

Hosted by CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte, this episode泭considers the several dimensions of China's COVID-19 diplomacy in Latin America and the Caribbean, including the delivery of medical supplies and provision or sale of Chinese vaccines to the region, explores China's goals for this diplomacy, and its relative success in achieving them. Guests include Ambassador Jorge Heine, who served as Chile's ambassador to China (2014-2017); Francisco Urdinez, Associate Professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile; and CLALS Director Eric Hershberg.

Episode 3: Public Diplomacy and Confucius Institutes

Hosted by CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte, this episode泭explores some of the key features of Chinese public diplomacy in Latin America and the Caribbean, giving particularly泭attention to the role played by China's Confucius Institutes as elements in the projection of China's growing soft power in the region. Guests include Monica DeHart, Professor, University of Puget Sound; Claudia Trevisan, Executive Director, Brazil-China Business Council; and CLALS Research Associate Professor Robert Albro.

Webinars

Evento China-LAC

China's Relations with Latin America

February 3, 2022泭|泭Event Recording

The Center, the泭Coordinadora泭Regional de泭Investigaciones泭Econ籀micas y Sociales (CRIES), and the泭Fundaci籀n Foro del Sur泭co-hosted a webinar to discuss the evolving relationship between China and Latin America and the Caribbean. Among other topics, panelists presented and discussed a state-of-the-art泭review of academic literature about this relationship, and the main findings of a泭recent泭survey泭of泭opinion leaders in 23 countries across the region on their perception of China and its role in Latin America. Panelists included:泭Andr矇s Serbin, CRIES President; Luiza Duarte, CLALS Research Fellow; Gino Pauselli, University of Pennsylvania; Cynthia Sanborn, Woodrow Wilson Center and Universidad del Pac穩fico; Marlise Ilhesca Jozami, Foro del Sur; and Eric Hershberg, CLALS Director.

China-El Salvador Webinar

Comunicando la influencia:
Narrativas sobre el papel de China en El Salvador, Am矇rica Latina y El Caribe

February 22, 2022泭|泭Event Recording

CLALS泭and its co-host, the泭Centro de Investigaci籀n para la Democracia泭(CIDEMO) at the Universidad de Oriente (UNIVO) led泭a discussion of泭China's economic partnership with Latin America泭and the Caribbean, which has been泭accompanied by an expansion of cultural and diplomatic ties with the region. With attention to El Salvador, the webinar "Comunicando la influencia: Narrativas sobre el papel de China en El Salvador, Am矇rica Latina y el Caribe" presented泭the transformations in Chinese external communication practices in the last decade through the use of media and social networks in the region. Panelists included: CIDEMO Director Rodolfo Mej穩a, CIDEMO Investigator Ang矇lica Sosa,泭CLALS Director Eric Hershberg, and CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte.

China-Brazil Webinar

Diplomacia p繳blica chinesa no Brasil

February 25, 2022泭|泭Event Recording

The Center and its co-host the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) held a discussion on China's economic partnership with Latin America, which has been泭accompanied by an expansion of cultural and diplomatic ties with the region. The webinar "Diplomacia p繳blica chinesa no Brasil" presented泭the transformations in Chinese external communication practices in the last decade through the use of media and social networks. Speakers included: CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte, School of International Service Professor and Brazil Research Initiative Director at 51勛圖泭Matthew Taylor, and International Relations Professor at Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ)泭Maur穩cio Santoro.

China-Chile Webinar

Estrategias de mensajer穩a china en Am矇rica Latina y el Caribe: El caso de Chile

February 28, 2022泭|泭Event Recording

Chinas economic presence in Chile has grown exponentially in recent years, with growing volumes of investment recently supplementing dramatic increases in bilateral trade. This trend coincides with Beijings projection of influence through instruments of soft power, including public diplomacy and an active presence in both legacy and digital media. This webinar reviews these themes in light of a CLALS project analyzing Chinas messaging strategies throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, with a particular interest in the case of Chile. Speakers included: CLALS Research Fellow Luiza Duarte, Instituto de Estudios Internacionales (IEI) Universidad de Chile Investigator Carlos Portales, Coordinadora Regional de Investigaciones Econ籀micas y Sociales (CRIES) President Andr矇s Serbin, and CLALS Associate Professor Robert Albro.