Biden presented economic and other initiatives at the Summit of Heads of State of the Americas-

U.S. President Joe Biden is hosting the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles this week to strengthen engagement with leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean. China is making deep economic and diplomatic progress in these regions.


The Biden administration has launched a series of economic, health and climate initiatives it hopes to counter Beijing's growing influence and strengthen democratic partnerships — similar to Biden's strategy for Indo-Pacific nations during his trip to Asia last month.

In both regions, Biden's message is that countries will benefit by aligning with his vision of economic prosperity: strengthening the middle class while committing to democracy, human rights, respect for the environment, and a "rules-based international order."

Biden repeatedly stressed during the summit: "Trickle-down economics will not work." Biden was referring to the theory that the economic benefits of corporations and the rich trickle down to others.

"When we invest in strengthening workers and the middle class, the poor have a ladder up, and those at the top are doing well," Biden said. Only then can we increase opportunities and reduce persistent inequalities. ”

That message is likely to resonate in Latin America, one of the most unequal regions in the world, where the richest 10 percent enjoy 54 percent of national income, according to the World Inequality Database.

However, the Biden administration's modest initiatives and promises to increase investment may not be enough to slow Beijing's rapid expansion in the region. Reuters' analysis of U.N. trade data from 2015 to 2021 shows that since Biden took office early last year, China has widened its trade gap with the United States in large swathes of Latin America.

Excluding Mexico, the largest U.S. trading partner, an analysis of the latest data shows that imports and exports between Latin America and China totaled nearly $247 billion last year, much higher than the $174 billion with the United States.

Twenty-one of the 24 Latin American and Caribbean countries have signed up to the Belt and Road Initiative, China's signature global infrastructure investment project. Meanwhile, since the launch of Build Back Better World at the G7 summit in June 2021, the Washington plan, which runs counter to Beijing's vision, has yet to be launched.

Since Biden took office, the United States has donated nearly 70 million doses of the new crown vaccine to the region of the Americas, but at the beginning of the epidemic, the United States had fallen behind China, a communist superpower. At the beginning of the crisis, Latin American and Caribbean countries relied on China to obtain vaccines.

"The United States is catching up," said Diego Abente Brun, director of the Latin American and Hemispheric Studies Program at George Washington University.

To do that, he said, the Biden administration will need to consider geopolitical and ideological factors and "take a more flexible approach" when dealing with countries like Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.

The three countries were not invited to the summit because they were considered undemocratic. This led leaders of several key partner countries, including Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Bolivia, to boycott the summit.

Trade and continuity

Observers note that the Biden administration has been unable to deliver what many countries in the region crave most: cuts in tariffs and other trade incentives that help deepen ties. With Trump-era protectionist sentiment still on the rise, Congress has shown little interest in opening up U.S. market access.

Politically polarized Washington has another disadvantage compared to China's one-party state: The U.S. government and its policies may change with the election cycle that takes place every four years.

"China has proposed cooperation plans for 2035 and 2050," said Enrique Dussel Peters, a professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. "[China] has a very clear long-term outlook."

"A few decades ago, the situation in the United States was much clearer. There was no political dispute like today," he told VOA.

With legislative proposals blocked by congressional polarization, Biden is mobilizing American businesses to invest more in the region.
"When we combine the government's ability to direct economic activity to specific challenges—helping to mitigate risk, guard against unfair practices, and creating predictable demand—with the flexibility of the private sector," Biden told business leaders on the sidelines of the summit, I believe we can truly improve people's lives."

While efforts to integrate the private sector are beneficial, they face the same problem: a lack of grand strategy, Dussel Peters said. He noted that 80 percent of Chinese investment in Latin America is made by state-owned enterprises, including those owned by cities, provinces and other municipalities.

"It's clear that China is trying to integrate infrastructure, investment, trade, financing, etc. Their strategy is very clear, but not for the United States. ”

Just as the PRC has reached out to small island nations in the Indo-Pacific in recent years, Washington is also making overtures to countries and regions in the Caribbean.

"My purpose is to strengthen relations with the Caribbean," Biden said when meeting with Caribbean leaders on the sidelines of the summit. "You are vital to us in every way, and I hope we are important to you too."

Beijing has long set its sights on the Caribbean to strengthen trade, infrastructure investment, and diplomatic engagement, R. Evan Ellis, a professor of Latin American studies at the U.S. Army War College's Institute of Strategic Studies, wrote in an October 2020 Wilson Center report.

The Caribbean, which provides important commercial access to the Atlantic coast for Chinese ships passing through the Panama Canal, shares features with islands in the South China Sea that Beijing wants to control. It is also an important voting bloc in the Organization of American States and other regional organizations, which adds to its strategic value in multilateral diplomacy.

As part of its growing focus on China, the State Department will create a "China House," an integrated team that plans to help coordinate and implement U.S. policy toward China, addressing challenges ranging from maritime security to disinformation.