Brazil’s da Silva Due at Beijing as Latin America Careers to the Left

President da Silva of Brazil, in the latest step in the entente with Communist China, will visit Beijing next month for a meeting to discuss trade, investments, and the war in Ukraine. Mr. da Silva, who has been neutral during the war, said he will advance his proposal to reach a peace agreement. Yet, as fault lines become more distinct in a new Cold War, Latin America’s leftist leaders are increasingly siding with Communist China and Russia, as they snub Washington’s plea to deliver to Ukraine surplus arms in their barracks. Washington has called on Latin leaders to send to Ukraine unused, soon-to-rot arms, including those they received from Russia. “Even if they end up as scrap in Colombia, we will not hand over Russian weapons to be taken to Ukraine to prolong a war,” Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, said.Such a stand among Latin American countries is “extremely weak,” the director of the Colombia Risk Analysis consultancy, Sergio Guzmán, told the Sun. Many of the region’s countries remain in the non-aligned mentality of the last century, which was their stance in the Cold War and as far back as World War II. “I believe that the no-alienation policy is a consequence of the fact that Latin American nations expect to continue to receive big investments in infrastructure from China,” Mr. Guzman said.On Monday, Secretary Blinken warned that Beijing could supply weapons to Russia. Communist China already has provided “non-lethal support” for Mocow’s use in Ukraine, Mr. Blinken said. “The concern that we have now is based on information we have that they’re considering providing lethal support,” he added. Beijing said the claims were false and accused Washington of spreading lies. Communist China’s president, Xi Jinping, is an ally of Russia’s president and has not condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While Washington fears that Beijing will join arms with Moscow against Western-allied Ukraine, Mr. da Silva claims that President Zelensky is “as responsible” as Mr. Putin for the war, and has partially blamed America and the European Union for the Russian invasion.Mr. da Silva is one of the Latin American nations refusing to respond to American and European Union pleas to send military equipment to assist Ukraine. Brazil is not interested “in passing on munitions to be used in the war,” Mr. da Silva said. “Brazil is a country of peace. At this moment, we need to find those who want peace, a word that has so far been used very little.”Russia is said to have allies within the governments of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, but other left-wing leaders in the region, including the presidents of Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil, have Russian-made military equipment, the head of the American Southern Command, General Laura Richardson, said. In exchange for providing assistance to Ukraine, Washington is offering to furnish the Latin countries with superior American-made arms, General Richardson said. As the hemisphere’s leaders declined the American offer, Russian embassies in each country praised their decisions. Last month, while visiting Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, also tried to convince leaders to send arms to Ukraine. Mr. da Silva refused to sell tank ammunition to Berlin. Argentina’s Alberto Fernandez rejected sending arms. Chile’s Gabriel Boric, whose coalition includes pro-Moscow supporters, only agreed to provide Ukraine with clearing mines. According to the Financial Times, Latin America could provide “valuable” weapons to Ukraine, as some have German-made Leopard tanks needed in Ukraine. Yet, Mexico’s Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he even opposed Mr. Scholz’s decision to provide Ukraine with Leopard tanks from Germany. Most Germans were against it, the Mexican president opined. This month, during a White House visit, President Biden and Mr. da Silva agreed to work together to “strengthen democratic institutions” and “reject extremism and violence in politics.” Yet, while Mr. da Silva portrays himself as the peacemaker, he has cultivated ties with belligerent dictators, including Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, and Mr. Putin.Earlier this year, Mr. da Silva said that Beijing wants to increase cooperation between the two countries and that Communist China is Brazil’s biggest trading partner. When Mr. da Silva meets with Mr. Xi, he will be meeting with Brazil’s biggest client, Mr. Guzman says. As part of its growing influence in Latin America, Beijing is looking to invest in the region’s technology, including in 5G networking and hydroelectric energy, Mr. Guzman says.

Brazil’s da Silva Due at Beijing as Latin America Careers to the Left

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