US military tracks 23 Chinese port projects in Latin America, general tells Congress

2026.03.17 21:20 General Francis Donovan, head of US Southern Command, oversees US military operations across Latin America and the Caribbean. Photo: AFP The US military is monitoring 23 Chinese port projects and 12 space-enabling facilities across Latin America and considers every one of them “a potential dual-use asset” that could support Chinese military operations, the top US commander for South America told Congress on Tuesday. General Francis Donovan, head of US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), made the disclosure during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on US military posture in the western hemisphere. Asked by Lance Gooden, a Republican congressman from Texas, whether Chinese commercial projects in the region could serve military purposes, Donovan said the Pentagon treats all of them as dual use regardless of how they are built. “I consider them all dual-use,” Donovan said, “and specifically whether they’re built with a military infrastructure background or they’re just a functional device that could be used to support Chinese actions.” He also said China’s growing role in mining and processing critical minerals in Latin America poses a long-term risk to the US defence industrial base. The 12 space sites are concentrated in the southern cone of South America, Donovan said. He did not name the facilities or the countries where they are located. The hearing came as the Trump administration has cited Chinese infrastructure penetration of the region as a primary security concern. In December, the White House released a national security strategy pledging to prevent non-Western powers from expanding their foothold across the western hemisphere. The document introduced what officials called the “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine, declaring that the United States would deny non-hemispheric competitors the ability to own or control strategically vital assets in the region. Joseph Humire, the Defence Department’s senior civilian official for the western hemi

原文链接: 南华早报