The opening pageantry of the Beijing Olympics at the Bird’s Nest stadium on Friday marks the start of serious business for two Latin American presidents making their own unusual bids for success during the Winter Games.
Argentina’s Alberto Fernández and Ecuador’s Guillermo Lasso are in China seeking support for national economic priorities — a sign of how Beijing’s influence is growing in Latin America.
Fernández will meet China’s president Xi Jinping on Sunday, where he is expected to sign Argentina up to the Belt and Road Initiative. Argentina will become the largest Latin American nation to join China’s flagship investment and infrastructure project so far.