The President of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, will be travelling to the Peoples’ Republic of China in February, in order to negotiate terms of the debt owed China, slated to all be entirely due in the next three years. President Lasso, a former banker, will want to work out different ways of “becoming even” through various means such as amending the current debt agreement, opening China up to various trade deals and economic commitments. After the COVID-19 pandemic, Ecuador was hit very hard financially, and even is taking $6.5 billion from the International Monetary Fund in the form of loans. They will also speak to the Chinese about environmental sustainability. To analyze this piece, I must say that this situation seems to be exactly where China wanted to be, in their aggressive push of influence in the third world, and it seems to have truly taken shape and paid off. The debt owed China by Ecuador is only $5 billion, nothing earth-shattering, nor urgent for one of the largest economic powerhouses in the world. It is, however, dire for a much smaller state in Ecuador, that needs to now act swiftly to agree to new terms with the Chinese, making them even more engrossed and endebted. To relate this back to international relations, particularly the recent discussion had on the developing situation in the South China Sea, China is becoming one of the greatest examples of a “smart power” in the current world order. While it has its own military might, comparably huge to most of the rest of the world, it also asserts dominance and gains influence through diplomacy and economic power. This causes states, such as Ecuador, to enter their sphere, without a need for any conflict, even if they may have been capable of it. Notably, once a state does enter into an order, it seems rather difficult to leave it.
