BRIC Summit Spotlights Latin America's Russia, China Ties

The world’s eyes may have been turned to Washington this week when the United States hosted over 40 countries for the Nuclear Security Summit to discuss non-proliferation. But, for some leaders, the conference was part of a broader hemispheric itinerary. Brasilia plays host to fellow BRIC (Brazil-Russia-India-China) and IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa) heads of state during two summits that take place between April 14 and 16. The tours of Presidents Hu Jintao of China and Dmitry Medvedev of Russia also shine a light on those countries’ growing ties to Latin America. Before the BRIC summit, Medvedev heads to Buenos Aires, marking the first official trip there by a Russian president, on April 17 and concludes his trip in Chile on April 18.

The BRICs held their first official meeting in June 2009, when they discussed shifting away from using the dollar as a global currency. With Brazil playing host this time around, the BRICs, which account for roughly 15 percent of the world’s economy, continue to seek a bigger role on the world stage. Ahead of Medvedev’s trip west, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko called BRIC “an important stabilizing factor in the international affairs and a reliable pillar in the formation of polycentric, fair, and democratic world order.” The president’s tour comes shortly after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin traveled to Venezuela and unveiled a bilateral arms deal worth over $5 billion. “[E]ven though commerce may be the primary motivation, the goods that the Russians are selling could potentially have negative consequences for regional peace and stability,” writes COA’s Eric Farnsworth in The Huffington Post.

Given that Brazil and Russia are major energy producers, BRIC discussions will likely cover energy cooperation. On that front, Beijing looks to the Americas to help feed its resource hunger. As The Wall Street Journal points out, “China is now amassing energy assets at a phenomenal rate.” In the past few weeks, China Petroleum & Chemical Corp announced a $4.65 billion investment in Canada’s oilsands and plans for a $3.1 billion joint venture with an Argentine oil firm. On Monday, Venezuela’s oil minister revealed Caracas stepped up oil exports to China by 21 percent since a year ago while Venezuelan exports to Washington have been on the decline. Hu travels to Caracas this week before heading to Chile, for which China now ranks as the country’s top trading partner stemming in part from Beijing’s interest and investment in Chilean copper.

The benefits of business with Asia—and China in particular—isn’t lost on other South American countries. “Why couldn’t Colombia grow 4 per cent this year, compared with Chile, Peru, and Brazil?” asked Colombia’s Finance Minister Oscar Zuluaga in a recent Financial Times interview. “It’s because of the level of integration to Asia. Colombia has a very low integration with Asia.” Still, some countries have felt the pinch of depending on China as an export market; in April a simmering trade dispute with Buenos Aires over duties on Chinese goods spurred Beijing to stem Argentine soybean oil imports.

Learn more:

• Xinhua News coverage of Chinese President Hu Jintao’s trip to the Western Hemisphere.
• Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s itinerary from April 12 to 15.
• President Medvedev’s remarks about BRIC’s global and economic role.
• Financial Times “Building BRICS” in-depth, online report.
• AS/COA coverage of President Hu’s 2008 trip to Costa Rica, Cuba, and Peru.