Editor's note: Pan Deng is a member of the Academic Committee at the Charhar Institute and the executive director of the Latin America and Caribbean Region Law Center of China University of Political Science and Law. The article reflects the author's opinions, and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

Colombian President Ivan Duque Marquez is in China for a state visit from July 28 to 31. With the third largest population in Latin America, Colombia is undoubtedly a regional power that can set an example for its neighbors. The same should be true when it comes to its relationship with China. For a long time, Colombia has lagged behind its neighbors in terms of its ties with China. President Duque's visit can help pick up the slack.

Good products from Colombia lost in Chinese market

China-Colombia trade relations are quite inconsistent with China's fast-growing trade ties with Latin America in the past few years. According to statistics from General Administration of Customs, the total trade volume between China and Latin America was 307.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2018. However, the trade volume between China and Colombia was only 14.6 billion U.S. dollars at that time, which was far behind that of Peru or Chile.

What makes Columbians even less optimistic is that it runs a trade deficit of nearly three billion U.S. dollars with China, and 90 percent of its exports to China are low value-added resources such as oil and ferronickel. The country's premium products, such as coffee, fruits and flowers which are recognized worldwide, have not taken off in the Chinese market yet.

A land of strategic investment opportunities 

Duque is the youngest president in the country's history. With a methodical and conscientious public image, he is different from other politicians who have emerged to become "young presidents" in Europe and Latin America.

In Colombia, a country that has just ended civil strife and seen the reconciliation process progressing slowly, the mandatory is subject to the restraints coming from both outside the region and within the country, but he never altered his ruling plan since taking office last August. As a result, the political and social order within Colombia has stabilized while the conditions and room for international cooperation have improved and expanded significantly.

In the light of the demand for reconstruction, Duque is looking for a "world economic power" for something more than just market.

In addition to using containers of avocado and 100,000 bags of coffee to please the palate of 1.4 billion people, he also hopes to export pork to China in the near future. With the Chinese government's approval and Chinese consumers' growing income, Colombian pork will be getting more popular in China. 

He will also invite Chinese enterprises to participate in the country's major projects. During his less than four-day visit, he not only experienced China's most important transportation hubs in Shanghai and Beijing , but also introduced the huge business opportunities in the filed related to public welfare such as infrastructure, transportation and port construction to Chinese firms, which his predecessors never did before.

Apart from cooperation in infrastructure, Duque is seeking China's help in high tech, 4G telecommunications, renewable energy and e-commerce during his visit. Duque is accompanied by a large delegation of entrepreneurs, including eager participants in these fields. He promised that this time he'll make China to see "Colombia as a place to invest in high value technology."

The young president, born in the 1970s, sets himself an agenda that will not only bring Colombia into political reconciliation and improve people's standard of living, but also integrate it into a new tidal wave of global economic development driven by science and technology. Therefore, it's easy to understand why seeking the alignment of development strategy with China is the most fundamental purpose of his state visit.

Prepare practical topics for substantive cooperation

Duque's interest in China goes far beyond economy. Although his country and China did not take exactly the same position on some issues involving Latin America, the two sides resolved possible misunderstandings through communication and dialogue. China has never forced Latin American countries to accept its ideas, nor challenged them to lean toward China over other super powers. Besides, China has given the young president a lot of support in the process of peaceful reconciliation, which has strengthened his resolution to deepen relations with China.

Such engagement is already happening as is shown by the achievements Duque has made during the current state visit. Fifteen agreements have been signed by the two sides so far, covering education, science and technology, environmental protection and judicial cooperation. The leaders of the two countries have further discussed the possibility of a greater consensus on broader issues such as anti-corruption, anti-drug, anti-terrorism and migratory phenomenon, putting more flesh on the bones of the future development of Sino-Colombian relations.

Next year will mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Colombia. Duque's visit is thus very timely. As a pragmatic politician, it is expected that Duque will focus on more substantive cooperation with China in the future.

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