China fires back after US official takes swipe at aid to Global South

Beijing tells Washington to stop sowing discord after US treasury secretary accuses China of signing ‘rapacious deals’ with developing world

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks outside the White House in Washington on March 13. Bessent took aim at China’s currency swap deal with Argentina in an interview earlier this week. Photo: TNS

Published: 6:15pm, 15 Apr 2025Updated: 7:29pm, 15 Apr 2025

Beijing has accused Washington of undermining the welfare of the Global South to serve its own geopolitical interests following remarks by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who described Chinese aid to developing nations as “rapacious deals”.

The Chinese embassy in Argentina rejected the comments on Tuesday and accused the US of sowing discord between China and developing countries, as well as hindering the development of other nations amid US President Donald Trump’s tariff war.

“The United States’ recent excessive imposition of tariffs deliberately strips the development rights of Global South countries … and will only exacerbate the wealth disparity, with underdeveloped countries facing more severe repercussions,” the embassy said in a statement.

The fierce criticism came after Bessent claimed Beijing had signed several agreements with African countries to take mineral rights.

“What we are trying to keep from happening is what has happened on the African continent,” Bessent told Bloomberg in Buenos Aires on Monday.

“China has signed a number of these rapacious deals marked as aid, where they’ve taken mineral rights and added huge amounts of debt onto these countries’ balance sheets,” Bessent said, adding that Chinese efforts were aimed at making the region poorer.

In its response, the embassy said: “China has, within its capacity, offered assistance to a wide range of developing nations, including those in Latin America and Africa, without imposing any political attachments.