China elevated diplomatic relations with Colombia to a strategic partnership on Wednesday, deepening a push with one of the oldest U.S. allies to expand its influence and strengthen its foothold in Latin America.

The two countries upgraded their relations, first established in 1980, as Colombian President Gustavo Petro met his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on a visit to Beijing this week, his first to the world's second-largest economy since assuming office last year.

The upgrade of relations with Colombia means China now has strategic ties with 10 out of the 11 South American countries with which it has relations. Guyana is the only country in the region with which it has ordinary bilateral ties.

In recent years, China has stepped up a charm offensive in South America, Central America and the Caribbean, a region of strategic significance for arch-rival the United States.

The region is also significant to China as it hosts a handful of countries that have no ties with Beijing but instead recognise democratically governed Taiwan as a sovereign state. Paraguay is the last South American nation that has ties with Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.

During the COVID pandemic, China was the first country that sent vaccines to Colombia. In 2021, in recognition of China's help in fighting the coronavirus, Xi was invited to give a speech, via video link, to the people of Colombia.

Chinese imports from Colombia have risen sharply in the last few years, becoming the South American nation's second-biggest trading partner after the United States. In 2022, shipments from Colombia to China totalled $7 billion, up almost 20% from five years earlier.

Colombia is one of the closest U.S. allies in the region. A middle-income nation and one of the oldest democracies in Latin America, it established ties with the United States in 1822.

"I'd like to work with Mr. President to draw up a blueprint for the development of China-Colombia relations and promote the strategic partnership between China and Colombia," Xi told Petro as the two met at the Great Hall of the People in the heart of Beijing.

Colombia has yet to join Xi's multi-region infrastructure Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), unlike many of its Latin American and Caribbean neighbours.

Colombia's former President Ivan Duque, who welcomed warmer ties with China and visited Beijing in 2019, had previously expressed willingness to join the BRI.

'GREAT IMBALANCE'

On his arrival in Beijing on Tuesday, Petro hailed the potential to increase Colombian exports to China and relaunching the Andean country's national rail network.

China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) is expected to complete by 2026 two subway lines of the Bogota Metro, a $4 billion project 30% funded by Chinese banks awarded to the CHEC, Xian Metro Company and Canada’s Bombardier Inc consortium in 2019.

Columbia also awarded its RegioTram light rail system project to China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) in 2019.

China also has its fingers in Colombian mining, where Zijin Mining acquired a gold mine in 2019 from Canada's Continental Gold, making it a key employer.

Despite loans, investments and offers to build infrastructure, China was asked to import more from South America.

"When we look at the trade balance between Colombia and China, we find a great imbalance, a great inequality, a product of the economic history of the two countries," Petro told Xi on Wednesday.

"There is a huge deficit."

Among the 11 South American countries that have diplomatic ties with Beijing, Colombia has the largest trade deficit with China despite increased Chinese imports. Last year, Colombia had a trade deficit of more than $8 billion.

Argentina, Venezuela, Bolivia and Suriname also posted trade deficits with China in 2022.