The Chinese embassy in Argentina has criticized Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for “maliciously slandering” the country as it continues to fund development assistance for African and Latin American countries.
“We advise the U.S. to adjust its mindset, instead of spending time repeatedly smearing and attacking China, meddling in the foreign cooperation of regional countries,” the embassy said, according to Reuters.
The statement comes after Bessent said he met with Argentine President Javier Milei — a Trump ally — on Monday to emphasize the administration’s economic support for the country.
Bessent, who has been critical of China amid the tariff war and ongoing geopolitical competition, spoke with BloombergTV after the meeting, where he said the administration is looking to help Latin American countries avoid the “rapacious” foreign aid agreements made by China in Africa.
“What we are trying to keep from happening is what has happened on the African continent, where China has signed a number of these rapacious deals marked as aid, where they are really, they take … mineral rights, they’ve added huge amounts of debt on to these countries balance sheets,” Bessent said, referencing the country’s investment in infrastructure and commercial projects.
Since Trump’s return to the White House, Bessent has taken on a leading role in the Trump administration and its sweeping tariff agenda.
The Chinese embassy in Argentina disagreed with Bessent’s Monday remarks, saying the claim about agreements being predatory and the large amounts of debt is false.
“The intention of these cooperations has been to contribute to socioeconomic development and improvement of the well-being of the people, which have been very well received by the beneficiary governments and peoples,” the embassy said in a statement originally in Spanish.
The embassy argued the U.S. is lacking respect for “developing countries and the Global South,” and has asked the administration to “refrain from deliberately obstructing” assistance from one country to another.
“China’s cooperation with Latin American countries–including Argentina– is a South-South partnership that always adheres to the principles of equal treatment, mutual benefit, and shared benefits,” the embassy said. “It never aims to carve our a sphere of influence or target third parties.”
Earlier this week, China and Argentina finalized a deal allowing the South American country to borrow $5 billion in a currency swap, the Associated Press reported.
The Hill has reached out to the Treasury Department for comment.
