Monica DeHart

Latin America’s robust relations with China illustrate China’s growing global significance. Since 2007, all but two Central American countries have renounced diplomatic relations with Taiwan to recognize the People’s Republic of China (PRC). However, the terrain on which these transpacific relations are unfolding is shifting from bilateral agreements to local level partnerships, and the protagonists are diversifying to include ethnic Chinese Central Americans. This ethnographic, comparative study illuminates the nature and stakes of these shifting transregional relations for a wide range of Central Americans, providing a nuanced portrait of the future of China-Central America relations from the ground up.