US Moving to Block Funding for Chinese Projects in Colombia After Nation Joins BRI
The State Department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said on May 15 that the United States will oppose international groups funding Chinese regime-backed projects in Colombia, a day after the South American nation signed a pact to join China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
'The U.S. will strongly oppose recent projects and upcoming disbursements by the @the_IDB and other IFIs for Chinese state-owned and controlled companies in Colombia (and other BRI countries in the region),' the bureau
'These projects endanger the region's safety and security. American tax dollars SHOULD NOT be used in any way by international organizations to subsidize Chinese companies in our hemisphere.'
IDB, which is the main source of development financing in Latin America and the Caribbean, did not immediately respond to an inquiry from The Epoch Times. According to its
On May 14, Colombia's Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia
The United States and China are Colombia's biggest trade partners, and the Chinese regime has been vying for more influence in the region.
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China recently held large
In the region, Panama also stands as an exception. In February, it announced that it would not be
Many U.S. officials and experts have been critical of BRI, which,
Panama's BRI exit was announced during U.S. Secretary Marco Rubio's trip to the country. Rubio met Panama's President José Raúl Mulino and told him that the United States had concerns over the CCP's 'current position of influence and control' around the Panama Canal and that this was 'unacceptable,' based on the neutrality treaty that allowed the United States to transfer control of the canal to Panama nearly three decades ago.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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