[Excerpt translation from Spanish provided by Business and Human Rights Resource Centre]

Peru will sign a memorandum of understanding to join the ambitious infrastructure Chinese initiative “Road & Belt” in the coming days, the ambassador from Peking in Lima said, despite warnings from the United States…the accord will transform Peru into one of the few countries in Latin America that will formally join the most important initiative by China, clearly showing how nations throughout the world are being pulled into the orbit of Beijing with the promise of investments, despite Washington objections …the Chinese president Xi Jinping launched the Road & Belt initiative (known as the New Silk Road) in 2013 as a means to expand Beijing’s links with Asia, Africa and Europe through miles of millions of dollars in investment in infrastructure…On the Peruvian front, [the minister of Foreign Commerce and Tourism, Edgar Vásquez] says there is interest in the improvement of investments in infrastructure, which at the same time boosts the efficiency of maritime and aerial connectivity, just like virtual commerce and the development of optic fibre lines.