The Balancing Act

This final chapter examines how Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) navigate intensifying US–China competition while safeguarding strategic autonomy, encapsulated in Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley&s;s dictum: “Friend to all, satellite of none.” Building on the book&s;s central argument that complex interdependence, realism, and dependency theory explain various aspects of the China-LAC relationship, the chapter shows that LAC states are neither passive victims of great-power rivalry nor fully sovereign free agents. Instead, they practice pragmatic non-alignment – leveraging ties with both Washington and Beijing to maximize development gains while mitigating dependency and security risks. Across sectors – from ports and digital infrastructure to critical minerals and security cooperation – LAC governments hedge, diversify partners, strengthen domestic resilience, and experiment with investment screening and regional coordination. The chapter highlights the political variation within the region, the role of domestic institutions, and the importance of civil society in shaping outcomes. It also assesses how China can become a more credible partner through transparency and respect for sovereignty, and how the United States and its allies should adopt a new “Good Neighbor Policy” instead of the “Donroe Doctrine,” offering high-quality alternatives and sustained engagement without coercion.