Heine Discusses Return of Leftist Governments in Latin America
On February 4, 2022, Ambassador Jorge Heine, Research Professor at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, appeared on CGTN America‘s “The Heat” to discuss the recent replacement of right-wing or centrist leaders with leftist governments in Latin America and what this means for geopolitics in the region.
Joining Heine on the program were Claudia Trevisan, Executive Director of Brazil-China Business Council; Arthur Estopinan, International and Public Affairs Chief with the Estopinan Group; and Jiang Shixue, Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at Shanghai University.
In his comments, Heine said that to claim former right-wing Latin American leaders did not handle the twin challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the recession that hit the region in 2020 is a massive understatement. As such, he claims that the reaction of most voters in the region was to oust the incompetent governments that fumbled these crises and change the direction of their respective countries. In addition, Heine discussed the impact of Chinese trade in the region pointing out that, if current trends continue, China will trade more with Latin America than the United States. As he postulates, this is an important factor in supporting Latin America’s economic recovery and digital development.
The full program can be viewed below.
Ambassador Jorge Heine is a Research Professor at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. He has served as ambassador of Chile to China (2014-2017), to India (2003-2007) and to South Africa (1994-1999), and as a Cabinet Minister in the Chilean Government. Read more on him here.