Argentina and Brazil’s Divergent Approaches to China’s Belt and Road by Rodrigo Moura

On November 4th 2023, The Diplomat, published and article titled “Argentina and Brazil’s Divergent Approaches to China’s Belt and Road”, written by Rodrigo Moura, that describes Argentina and Brazil’s relationship to China and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and what it could entail for other developing countries.

Moura states that Argentina and Brazil, the largest economies in South America and G-20 members, differ in their approach to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). While Argentina, facing financial challenges, joined the BRI in 2022, Brazil, a major trade partner with China, has refrained from participation. Brazil, with a more mutually dependent relationship with China, has the flexibility to navigate its choices, utilizing its bargaining power and recognizing the limits of Chinese financial influence, contrasting with Argentina’s more desperate embrace of the BRI.

According to the author, Argentina’s decision to join the BRI is driven by its economic hardships and dependence on Chinese support, while Brazil, despite heavy trade ties with China, strategically refrains from the BRI, leveraging its bargaining power and acknowledging the limited impact of the BRI on actual trade and investment dynamics.

You can find the full article here.

Image: Li Ding – stock.adobe.com