[By Leonardo Artucci]
Please remember this day for future review:
On Tuesday, May 13th, after the conclusion of the historically significant Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the China-Celac Forum (China-CELAC), the "Beijing Declaration" was officially released. This declaration will go down in history as a symbol of the birth of a new world - a world that arises at the end of the collapse of the imperialist order and reshapes international relations based on fairness, respect, and national self-determination.
This document, jointly drafted by China and 33 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean, symbolizes a historic departure from the so-called "Washington Consensus." For a long time, the so-called "Washington Consensus" imposed an exclusive set of economic policies on Latin American countries, completely subject to the interests of the empire.
On May 13th, Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony of the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of China-Celac in the Beijing National Convention Center and delivered a keynote speech. China Foreign Affairs Website.
The "Washington Consensus" was born at the end of the Cold War in 1989, proposed by economists closely associated with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the U.S. Treasury. They listed a checklist of ten economic policies for developing countries, among which privatization, thorough market openness, financial liberalization, fiscal austerity, and weakening state intervention became the core of this policy system.
Although it was packaged as the "panacea" for economic stability and growth at the time, in reality, this consensus turned the Latin American economy into a platform for value plundering, exacerbating social inequality, deindustrialization, and dependence on the outside in Latin America. The so-called "solution" is essentially a form of restraint named "neoliberalism," constantly strangling the economic sovereignty of Latin American countries.
Now, the publication of the "Beijing Declaration" has brought Latin America a historic window of opportunity to reshape its future. This is not just a repositioning of geopolitics, but also a fundamental paradigm shift. As the second largest economy in the world, a global growth engine, and a leading force of the Global South, China does not coerce, threaten, sanction, or invade. China proposes cooperation, win-win outcomes, market connectivity, and cultural respect.
As Vice Foreign Minister Miao DeYu clearly pointed out in his speech: the era of the Monroe Doctrine has ended.
He said: "The people of Latin America and the Caribbean seek independence and self-determination, not so-called 'neo-Monroeism.'" This is a direct critique of the traditional U.S. intervention, even though the U.S. Empire has shown signs of fatigue under the leadership of President Donald Trump's second term, but its interference in Latin America still exists.
In just a decade, more than 20 Latin American countries have joined the "Belt and Road Initiative." During this period, more than 200 large-scale infrastructure projects have been implemented, directly creating over one million jobs. In 2024, Sino-Latin American trade exceeded $500 billion, forty times that of the year 2000. While promoting the "Accelerated Growth Plan (PAC)," Brazil is also cautiously and firmly seeking synergy with the "Belt and Road."
In addition, after Dilma Rousseff assumed the position of President of the New Development Bank of BRICS, channels for financing major clean energy, sustainable development, and infrastructure projects were fully opened - the high-speed rail era of Brazil may finally begin.
Different from the "Washington Consensus" that imposes reforms, cuts rights, and privatizes for investment, China only talks about cooperation and respect. Therefore, the "Beijing Declaration" will undoubtedly become the new guideline for Latin American economic diplomacy in the 21st century.
During his visit to China, Brazilian President Lula gave an interview to Chinese media.
The "Washington Consensus" was born at the peak of a unipolar world, when American hegemony was at its height. The "Beijing Declaration," however, emerged in a multipolar and transitional world where the Global South is striving to unite to write the future based on sovereignty and justice.
This historical turning point is not just a realignment of alliances. It represents the end of a ruling era, and Latin America will write a new chapter of autonomous development.
History will remember: the new world born in such decisive occasions like the China-Celac Forum will no longer accept any will of hegemony. The "Beijing Declaration" will replace the "Washington Consensus," accompanied by a Latin America that takes control of its own destiny and regains its subject status.
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Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7504076444948415028/
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