At a hearing of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the United States Senate on the role of China in Latin America and the Caribbean held this Thursday, an official accused Russia of wanting to “export the crisis from Ukraine” to the continent by expanding its military cooperation with Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. He also criticized Beijing for its closeness to Moscow.
“The Western Hemisphere’s commitment to democracy has never seemed more urgent, as Russia tramples on Ukraine’s democracy and threatens to export the Ukrainian crisis to the Americas by expanding its military cooperation with Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela,” he said. Kerri HannanUndersecretary for Public Diplomacy, Policy, Planning and Coordination.
Ranking Member Rubio questions Kerri Hannan, Deputy Assist Sec for Public Diplomacy at @StateDept, @USAID‘s Peter Natiello, and @DFCgov EVERY @aherscowitz at a @SenateForeign Relations Subcommittee Hearing on #CCP influence in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Watch below: pic.twitter.com/cIEoXoI1xa
— Senator Rubio Press (@SenRubioPress) March 31, 2022
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Some Latin American countries chose not to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine due to its ideological and economic ties with Moscow, among them are precisely those that stand out for their anti-democratic practices such as Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela.
The Russian president has been a key ally of Nicolás Maduro and has helped him stay in power in Venezuela through millionaire loans, military exercises and vaccine donations. In 2019, the Chavista promised to pay 532 million dollars to Moscow until 2022 and 684 million between 2023 and 2026.
In the case of Cuba, the explanation comes from the 2.3 billion dollars that the Kremlin gave to Havana to finance energy and transportation projects, as well as to guarantee the supply of products to the island, according to the Cuban news agency Prensa. Latin.
Russia has also granted millionaire loans to President Daniel Ortega for the expansion of the Managua airport and has donated buses to renew capital transportation. However, the greatest cooperation is the military, through donations of discarded tanks.
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Hannan also criticized Beijing’s stance in his speech. “Our region, with some exceptions, has condemned Russia and supported our efforts to urge Russia to immediately cease its war against Ukraine and seek a diplomatic resolution. Our allies and partners have seen the stark contrast between our position and that of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), as its diplomats uplift the Kremlin’s propaganda and seek to shield Russia from condemnation in international bodies.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi agreed to intensify cooperation between their countries “in a sustainable and consistent manner” amid “complicated international conditions,” according to the Russian agency Interfax. That cooperation includes speaking with one voice on global issues, as well as the development of a coordinated foreign policy between the two friendly governments, which had already formalized their strategic partnership at a meeting in Beijing between their respective presidents, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, 20 days before the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The leaders then put forward a proposal for a new world order, an alternative to the one led by the United States and the West.
The Russian minister yesterday reiterated that coordination with Beijing, agreed by Putin and Xi. “We are going through a serious moment in the history of international relations. I am convinced that, after the results, the international situation will become much clearer and, together with you and other like-minded nations, we will move towards a multipolar, fair and democratic world,” Lavrov said.