Bolivia

Bolivia Nationalizes Natural Gas Industry
01 May 2006

NEW YORK TIMES (NEW YORK)--Bolivia's President Evo Morales decreed the nationalization of the country's natural gas industry 01 May 2006, following through on an election pledge to increase control over the energy industry. Under the decision, he ordered foreign firms to send production to a state company for sales and industrialization, and said that the state will also recover Bolivian hydrocarbons companies that were privatized in the 1990's, with the state taking over shares that are in the hands of foreign companies and of semi-public Bolivian entities. As president-elect, Mr. Morales met with President Hu Jintao of China in Beijing and called China an "ideological ally," a day after he invited it to develop Bolivia's vast gas reserves. Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/01/world/americas/01cnd-bolivia.
html?hp&ex=1146542400&en
=7011d6fe62928beb&ei=5094&partner=homepage (Reliability: 8)

Cuba

Castro Plans To Let China Drill Off United States Coast
28 April 2006

RED STATE (UNITED STATES)-We thought it was bad enough that Fidel Castro can drill for oil 45 miles off our shores when we can't, but now comes Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID), to call attention to the fact that fierce United States (U.S.) competitor China is partnering with Cuba to explore these same oil fields. Lou Dobbs reported on this on Thursday, too -- as did Fox News -- but Lou's reporter Kitty Pilgrim got it a bit wrong saying, “But U.S. companies, because of the U.S. embargo of Cuba and hostile relations with Fidel Castro, are locked out of the game.” She is right that there is an embargo in effect with Cuba. But the big problem isn't that U.S. companies can't tap Cuba's oil. The big problem is that our own government does not allow us to tap U.S. oil! Eighty-five percent of this treasure trove of oil and gas (80 billion barrels of oil and 420 trillion cubic feet of gas) are subject to a federal embargo. Source: http://pat-cleary.redstate.com/story/2006/4/27/23439/4539 (Reliability: 4)

Comment: Red State unashamedly admits to reporting with a Republican (or Conservative) bias.

Latin America

China Rules The Wild Side
28 April 2006

STRATEGY PAGE (UNITED STATES)--China is increasingly using arms sales and trade as a diplomatic tool. Nothing unusual there, except that the Chinese are specializing in outcast, and outlaw, nations. This is risky business. For example, Chinese government and business officials are in accord that it's not practical to do any serious business with Venezuela because President Hugo Chavez has "a short attention span" and is likely to make glowing promises about all sorts of possible deals, but then never follow through. Source: http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htproc/articles/20060428.aspx (Reliability: 9)

Caribbean

China Hopes To Further Ties With Caribbean Countries
28 April 2006

THE JAMACIA OBSERVER (BEIJING)--Chinese Vice-Premier Zeng Peiyan said earlier this week that China hopes to enhance relations with Latin American and Caribbean countries to achieve common development. “China values relations with the Latin American and Caribbean nations and hopes to deepen political trust, economic cooperation and cultural exchanges to ensure the stable development of bilateral friendly cooperation for mutual benefit and common development,” Zeng said at talks with Executive Secretary José Luis Machinea of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/Business/html/20060427T210000-0500
_103429_OBS_CHINA_HOPES_TO_FURTHER_TIES_WITH_CARIBBEAN_COUNTRIES.asp
(Reliability: 7)

Cuba

China Eyeing Cuba Offshore Oil

27 April 2006

NEWS MAX (UNITED STATES)--China and a host of other oil-hungry nations will be tapping into huge offshore oil deposits a mere 50 miles from the United States (U.S.) while this nation is forced to endure rising gas prices as a result of record high demand for oil fueled by such countries as China and India. According to Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, the U.S. energy sector has been "hamstrung" from seeking additional oil resources while at the same time allowing "the likes of China, Canada, Brazil, Spain, France and others to freely seek energy opportunities 50 miles off our coast without competition from state-of-the-art technologies and expertise of our own U.S. gas and oil industries." Source: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2006/4/27/224539.shtml (Reliability: 5)

The Caribbean

China’s Caribbean Strategy

26 April 2006

THE TRUMPET (BARBADOS)--What is of special interest to those who are aware of China’s long-term strategy to take over control of the world’s most strategic seaways is that the Chinese have moved, in recent years, to significantly penetrate the sea gateways to the south of the United States within the Caribbean. With Panama, already under Chinese control, in the process of being upgraded to take larger vessels, and Freeport in the Bahamas having been developed in recent years by the Chinese into a massive container terminal, China is now moving to extend its Caribbean sea-gate control. Of particular note is the transition-taking place in Grenada. What the Communists failed to do during the 1970s revolution in Grenada, they are now achieving through Chinese involvement in ongoing reconstruction and development in that island nation. Source: http://www.thetrumpet.com/index.php?page=article&id=2156 (Reliability: 4)

Comment: This source is exclusively affiliated with The Philadelphia Church of God, which means that its views are obviously skewed toward the conservative.

Latin America

How China Is Winning The Oil Race
26 April 2006

MSN MONEY (UNITED STATES)--In Latin America, China is increasingly becoming the partner of choice for repressive, paranoid or regionally ambitious regimes that want to buy guns and tanks with their oil and ore revenues. According to The Los Angeles Times, the Bush administration held talks with the Chinese to encourage them to curb their role in training and advising forces in the southern hemisphere. This is getting to be a problem, as the region -- fabulously rich in metal, energy and agricultural resources -- is increasingly run by ideologues willing to snub traditional United States interests and seek less meddlesome buyers. China is now Latin America's second-largest trading partner, surpassing Europe. From 2001 to 2006, exports from the region to China rose more than 500 percent. In 2004 alone, Hu signed letters of intent worth USD 100 billion over the next 10 years, according to published reports. Source: http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/P149330.asp (Reliability: 8)

Latin America

China Sales A Mixed Blessing For Latin America
26 April 2006

ASIA TIMES (NEW YORK)--If Latin America’s economic ties with China do not undergo a structural change, the region will be unable to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), an Argentine expert said during the Latin Economic Forum held recently at United Nations headquarters. “The relations between China and Latin America today represent a historic opportunity, given the enormous growth in Chinese demand for commodities and fuel,” professor of statistics Graciela Chichilnisky said. Source: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/HD26Cb05.html (Reliability: 6)

Bolivia

China To Supply Planes To Bolivia
25 April 2006

PRENSA LATINA (LA PAZ)--The People's Republic of China will supply three transport planes to relieve the needs of the Bolivian Air Force, Bolivian Air Force Chief Gen. Luis Trigo said on 25 April 2006. He said, by virtue of an agreement signed with the Chinese government and a Chinese aircraft enterprise, in the next 18 months the Bolivian Air Force will receive two modern Chinese MA-60s, financed by Chinese credit to pay over 20 years. The general added that China would also deliver a Vaye-146-100 passenger jet in the next 90 days, under similar conditions. These units will improve the civilian transport aircraft fleet, which has not been renovated since 1979, when a Dutch Fokker plane was purchased. President Evo Morales said his administration is making efforts for the Bolivian Air Force to have more planes to improve communication with the more isolated populations. Source: http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp?ID=%7BFA02FE58-
7C56-4B88-95B1-E9CC674380F0%7D&language=EN (Reliability: 7)

Cuba

China-Cuba Biotechnology Seminar Held In Beijing
24 April 2006

CUBAN NEWS AGENCY (HAVANA)--Cuban and Chinese scientists held a seminar in Beijing on biotechnology and biotech products used in cancer therapy. Biotech Pharmaceutical, a Cuba-China joint venture dedicated to the production of monoclonal antibodies, and the Cuban embassy in China organized the forum. While delivering the opening address, Rigoberto Enoa, the economic counselor of the Cuban embassy, highlighted a memorandum of understanding on biotechnological cooperation, which was signed during the visit to Cuba of Chinese President Hu Jintao in November 2004. Enoa referenced the creation of two jointly run enterprises in China, which will be involved in development of Cuban biotechnological products. Source: http://www.ain.cubaweb.cu/idioma/ingles/2006/abr24cuba-china.htm (Reliability: 6)