In a July 22 statement, the spokesperson for China’s embassy in Buenos Aires denounced the statements made by Peter Lamelas, Donald Trump’s nominee to become the U.S. Ambassador to Argentina, charging they were filled with “ideological prejudices, Cold War thinking and zero-sum games.” Lamelas told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee July 22, during his confirmation hearing, that as ambassador he would meet with all 23 of Argentina’s provincial governors and warn them of the dangers of trading with China, and work “to weed out corruption” associated with Chinese investment in the country.
China’s spokesperson said that Lamelas’ remarks only create a “sensation of anxiety about the possible resurgence of the Monroe Doctrine. This contradicts and opposes the `democratic values’ [the U.S.] so often proclaims.” China, unfortunately, mistakenly associates the Monroe Doctrine with the imperial policy practiced by Teddy Roosevelt, rather than its true intent as defined by John Quincy Adams.
