The Global South and the Year of the Fire Horse

Editor's note: Lidia Fagale is a Belt and Road journalist of News portal on China and the Global South, Clave China Noticias (Weekly radio program Clave China); The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

Each Chinese New Year brings stories about the meaning of the new cycle represented by an animal combined with one of the five elements.

In 2026, the Year of the Fire Horse stands out in a particularly striking way, and it has arrived in our lands with greater force than in previous years.

Perhaps this is due to the growing cultural and industrial influence that China has achieved in Latin America and the Caribbean, following the undeniable commercial, economic, investment, and cooperation momentum that has also strengthened curiosity about better integrating the economy and culture between our regions.

It may also be because our current reality shares the characteristics with what the horse symbolizes in 2026: An "untamable" year, favorable for bold change and daring action, while also warning of the need to control impulsiveness to avoid conflict.

Learning about the history of this cherished animal — the horse — and the particular intensity that the element of fire brings to it leads me to reflect on the global situation we are currently experiencing, and how, not coincidentally, reality itself seems to be named through what the Fire Horse represents.

If the horse symbolizes freedom, speed, and leadership, fire represents passion, intensity, and transformation. It is undeniable that this energy also gallops across the Global South, giving renewed meaning to ideas of freedom, transformation, and bold change — while confronting conflicts in the pursuit of peace rather than war.

I bring to these reflections a trilogy by Argentine author Florencia Bonelli titled Caballo de Fuego (Fire Horse). It develops a romance and suspense plot centered on an Argentine pediatrician, Matilde, and Eliah Al-Saud, a powerful Arab man linked to espionage and military business, set against global conflict scenarios. Their relationship confronts empires and nuclear threats as they fight for love and survival. The story culminates in the Gaza Strip, where Matilde performs humanitarian work while Eliah struggles against his own demons to prevent a global catastrophe and save their relationship, defying borders and cultures. It is a story about overcoming cultural differences, extreme dangers, and war for a love that is intense and sometimes heartbreaking — but love, nonetheless.

At this moment, Argentine open television is broadcasting Corazones destinados ("Destined Hearts"), a 38-episode Chinese drama that tells the story of passionate romance and political intrigue between a legendary archer, Fu Yixiao, and her enemy prince, Feng Suige. After attempting to kill him, she loses her memory, and the two are forced to ally in order to survive in the turbulent city of Yujing. The question it poses is whether hatred can be eradicated, whether love can emerge, or whether a less violent balance in human relations can be achieved. 

Both stories cited here are love stories set in contexts of enmity and war. One may also ask whether the world of entertainment can contribute to peace or provide elements through which violence gives way to dialogue.

In the history of the Cuban Revolution, there was also a story of love — love for its leader and for his ideas, Fidel Castro. On the centenary of his birth, and in the coincidences of calendars, I recall the nickname given to him by the Cuban people: "the horse," because he was untamable and strong, symbolizing his leadership capacity, revolutionary spirit, perseverance, patriotism, sense of justice, and strength of will. This Fire Horse transcended his death and continues to symbolize essential ideas of transformation despite the difficulties imposed by the empire.

A Fire Horse that did not remain on the island, but galloped (and continues to gallop) as an idea throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, inspiring liberation movements across the region, Africa, and Asia. It returns again and again as an inspiring muse of freedom and transformation.

Everything seems to name, from another perspective, a world in transition toward a new global order — one battered (to put it mildly) by the United States, whose hegemony is in crisis and now charges ahead like an unbridled horse seeking its future, disregarding most of humanity. Trampling sovereignty and seizing resources with the brutality of those who fail to realize that they are no longer playing this game alone.

Some voices have warned of the need to strengthen multilateral policies to confront the "drugged horse of the North" that seeks to break down every gate. Canada, present in Davos and historically allied with the United States, unhitched its carriage and raised its voice of independence, signing several trade agreements with China despite threats from Donald Trump to impose 100 percent tariffs if it did so.

Denmark and Greenland also received support from many countries in response to the US intentions to annex Arctic territory — or rather, to purchase it — something that has characterized the history of the northern country, which has bought territories and annexed lands, including former Mexican territories.

The Fire Horse must this year confront the information blockade surrounding Venezuela after what is described as an unacceptable aggression culminating in the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, leaving more than 100 dead, including 32 Cuban security personnel. It must also extend its energy to ensure a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, where the population of Gaza appears to pay for its Palestinian identity.

This is a year in which we must help clear away the narratives of manipulation and misinformation directed at countries labeled as enemies by the self-proclaimed hegemony of the Western Hemisphere. This has posed serious ethical dilemmas for global journalism.

Finally, I see the fire of the horse continuing to illuminate China as it sends a message to the world amid geopolitical turbulence: Reaffirming its support for the United Nations-centered international system; rejecting unilateral US actions; promoting democratization of international relations and greater representation for the Global South; defending peaceful coexistence and dialogue; opposing unilateral sanctions and coercion; and proposing a Global Security Initiative centered on common, comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable security. It advocates non-interference in internal affairs and peaceful dispute resolution, particularly in regions of tension. 

May the Fire Horse gallop across all countries of the Global South, consolidating a path of greater understanding — less fragile, more peaceful —and perhaps we may write a story in which love for humanity triumphs over the runaway horse of capital.