China is attempting to export its authoritarian model across the hemisphere
China's systematic regional expansion includes resource extraction, port development, and space infrastructure that could project power and disrupt maritime commerce and national sovereignty. Transnational criminal organizations generate $358 billion annually through drug, arms, and human trafficking, prompting US calls for increased military cooperation and maritime surveillance.
- Admiral Alvin Holsey, head of U.S. Southern Command, warned at SOUTHDEC 2025 in Buenos Aires on Wednesday
- Transnational criminal organizations generate approximately $358 billion annually through illicit trafficking
- China is establishing dual-use infrastructure including ports and space facilities across Latin America
- Eight South American nations participated: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, and Uruguay
US Southern Command chief Admiral Alvin Holsey warned at a defense conference in Buenos Aires that China seeks to export its authoritarian model and establish dual-use infrastructure across Latin America, while also highlighting transnational crime threats.
Admiral Alvin Holsey stood before defense ministers and military commanders gathered in Buenos Aires on Wednesday and laid out a stark picture of the region's security landscape. The head of U.S. Southern Command was there to open SOUTHDEC 2025, the South American Defense Conference, but his message extended far beyond the conference room. China, he warned, was methodically working its way into Latin America—not through military invasion, but through a calculated strategy of economic entanglement and infrastructure control. The Chinese Communist Party, Holsey said, was attempting to "export its authoritarian model, extract resources, and establish dual-use infrastructure, from ports to space." These facilities, he explained, could allow Beijing to project military power across the hemisphere, disrupt global trade routes, and ultimately challenge the sovereignty of nations across the region and even threaten the neutrality of Antarctica itself.
The admiral's concerns about China were echoed by Roosevelt Ditlevson, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense for National Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, who painted an even more granular picture of the threat. Chinese companies, Ditlevson said, were acquiring land and seizing control of critical infrastructure—energy grids, communications networks, military intelligence facilities, and space installations scattered across the hemisphere. Most alarmingly, he noted, China was positioning itself to threaten vital maritime chokepoints, particularly the Panama Canal, a waterway essential to the economic survival of every nation in the region.
But China was only part of the conversation. Holsey also sounded the alarm on transnational criminal organizations, which according to U.S. intelligence generate roughly $358 billion annually through the illicit trafficking of drugs, weapons, people, natural resources, and wildlife. The scale of the problem demanded more than rhetoric, Holsey insisted. He called on regional governments to transform dialogue into concrete action—to deepen military cooperation, strengthen surveillance of maritime routes, and bolster the capacity of their security forces to take on organized crime networks.
Argentina's Defense Minister Luis Petri seized the moment to reaffirm his country's alignment with Washington. He outlined a three-pillar defense strategy centered on strategic vision, military modernization, and alliance cooperation. Petri emphasized the critical importance of the South Atlantic, describing the ocean as "the artery through which global commerce flows." He warned that illegal, unreported fishing was eroding ecosystems, national revenues, and sovereignty itself. He also reiterated Argentina's longstanding claim to the Falkland Islands, a territorial dispute that remains unresolved.
The conference brought together military leaders from eight South American nations—Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, and Uruguay—along with observers from Canada, France, Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. SOUTHDEC, which has convened annually since 2009, exists to "consolidate mutual cooperation among friendly nations in order to continue building a safer and more secure region," according to Argentina's Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Holsey's visit to Argentina is the latest in a series of high-level Trump administration delegations to the country. In recent months, Argentine President Javier Milei has hosted Kristi Noem, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security; Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Secretary of Health and Human Services; and Scott Bessent, the Treasury Secretary. The frequency and seniority of these visits signal Washington's determination to deepen ties with Buenos Aires.
From Argentina, Holsey was headed to Paraguay, where he planned to meet with local officials to discuss security cooperation against organized transnational crime, as well as military training and capacity-building. Paraguay's Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Holsey would be accompanied by officials from the U.S. Departments of Defense and Homeland Security, as well as representatives from the White House. Michael Jensen, the National Security Council's senior director for the Western Hemisphere, was also expected to arrive in Asunción that week.
Ramírez indicated that Paraguay and the United States are working to strengthen their joint fight against organized crime, human trafficking, arms smuggling, money laundering, and corruption. Notably, he emphasized that Paraguay is pursuing these security partnerships not only with Washington but also in coordination with Argentina and Brazil, particularly in the sensitive tri-border region where the three nations meet. The two countries are also negotiating a military cooperation agreement that would expand training and capacity-building for Paraguay's armed forces both in Paraguay and in the United States.
Citas Notables
The Chinese Communist Party continues its methodical expansion in the region, seeking to export its authoritarian model, extract resources, and establish dual-use infrastructure that could allow it to project power, disrupt commerce, and challenge national sovereignty.— Admiral Alvin Holsey, head of U.S. Southern Command
Chinese companies are acquiring land and critical infrastructure—energy, communications, military intelligence facilities, and space installations—and threatening vital maritime chokepoints like the Panama Canal.— Roosevelt Ditlevson, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why is Admiral Holsey so focused on China's infrastructure plays? What makes a port or a space facility a security threat?
Because dual-use infrastructure can serve civilian purposes on the surface but enable military projection underneath. A Chinese-controlled port can monitor shipping, a space facility can gather intelligence. It's not about the infrastructure itself—it's about who controls the vantage point.
And the $358 billion figure for transnational crime—is that the real number, or is it an estimate meant to shock?
It's a U.S. intelligence estimate, so it carries uncertainty. But the point isn't precision; it's scale. That kind of money flowing through criminal networks destabilizes governments, corrupts institutions, and makes entire regions ungovernable. It's not just a drug problem.
Why does Argentina keep bringing up the Falkland Islands in a defense conference?
Because for Argentina, sovereignty and security are inseparable. The Falklands dispute is unresolved, and in a conversation about protecting territorial waters and maritime interests, it's impossible to ignore. It's a reminder that regional security isn't just about external threats.
Is Paraguay's tri-border coordination with Argentina and Brazil a sign of real unity, or just diplomatic theater?
It's probably both. The tri-border region is genuinely lawless in parts—a haven for smuggling and organized crime. But the fact that three countries are willing to coordinate suggests they recognize the threat is bigger than any one nation can handle alone. That's real pressure.
What does Holsey's second trip to Argentina in one year tell you?
It tells you the U.S. sees Argentina as a key partner in a larger competition with China. Milei's government is aligned with Washington, and the Trump administration is investing heavily in that relationship. They're not taking it for granted.