Coronavirus: Paraguay getting pressured by China?

I recently looked at the surge of COVID-19 in Brazil. My speculation was that Paraguay could become a hot spot due to their obvious proximity to Brazil. Also, Our World In Data has them lagging when it comes to vaccinations. Worldometer definitely shows an uptick in cases. It appears to have started in mid-February. Compared to some other South American countries such as Brazil and Chile they did a decent job early on at fighting the spread of the virus. Yet, that early success could actually be a detriment now as they could experience a serious spike in cases. 

 

A way to avoid such a spike is to improve their performance when it comes to their vaccination program. Leave it to the Chinese to attempt to use this to their advantage. The Diplomat (Mar 27) has this to say:

Paraguay’s foreign ministry said this week it had been approached by brokers claiming to offer batches of Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine in exchange for the country cutting its diplomatic ties with Taiwan.

The ministry said in a statement the “intermediaries and other private figures” who offered the deal “had no official status, and their legitimacy or links with the government of the People’s Republic of China has not been proved.”

Why would China do such a diplomatic move?

. . . Paraguay is one of Taiwan’s 15 official diplomatic allies and the only remaining Taiwanese ally in South America. In recent years, China has wooed its neighboring countries with promises of large infrastructure loans and investments, making offers of cash assistance Taiwan is unable to match.

Now, of course, Paraguay might have a reason to exaggerate, as well. 

The New York Times (Mar 7) reported this about the situation in the country a few weeks ago:

President Mario Abdo Benítez of Paraguay faced calls for his resignation and large street protests over the weekend as residents decried the dismal state of the public health system, under strain amid a record number of coronavirus infections.

. . . Protesters and opposition lawmakers said that the country’s health crisis had been exacerbated by pervasive corruption at all levels of public procurement and spending.

So yes, the Paraguay government has an incentive to maybe get a bit of nationalism started in their country -- that tiny Paraguay is standing up to the mighty China.