ISTANBUL

China said on Monday that its ties with South America are “never driven” by geopolitics in the wake of the “Shield of the Americas” summit held on Saturday in Washington by US President Donald Trump.

“Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries are independent sovereign countries and have the right to independently choose development paths and cooperation partners,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a news conference in Beijing.

“China upholds the principles of mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit, openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation in conducting exchanges and cooperation with LAC countries in various fields,” Gio said.

“The China-LAC cooperation is never driven by geopolitical calculations, does not target any third party and should not be disrupted or affected by any third party,” Gio added.

His remarks came after Trump announced at the summit the creation of a new military coalition, formally called the America’s Counter-Cartel Coalition (ACCC), to combat powerful criminal gangs and cartels across the Americas.

Trump said the coalition reflects a broader doctrine aimed at preventing “foreign influence and instability” in the Western Hemisphere.

The gathering brought together several leaders from the Americas, including Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves, Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader, and Chilean president-elect Jose Kast.