China–Peru Relations
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China–Peru relations ( zh, t=中秘关系, p=Zhōng mì guānxì; ) are foreign relations between the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
and the
Republic of Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
. Peru is the first Latin American country which China established formal ties, which was done by the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
in August 1875. Both nations are members of the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy , economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Following the success of Association of Southeast Asia ...
and the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
. Relations between both nations went through three stages: Chinese coolieism as an institutionalization of human capital export to Latin America during the nineteenth century; the Maoist ideology transfer in the 1970s and 1980s; and, from the 1990s onwards, through international trade and cultural and Mandarin language centers—the
Confucius Institute Confucius Institutes (CI; ) are public educational and cultural promotion programs of the state of China. The stated aim of the program is to promote Chinese language and culture, support local Chinese teaching internationally, and facilita ...
.


History

Relations were established more than 160 years ago, intertwined with local social imageries, power structures, and narratives. Peru established relations with the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
with the signing of a treaty in
Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
on June 26, 1874. Peru's first Resident Ambassador was named the next year, assuming his duties on May 20, 1878, while the Chinese ambassador would only reach Peru in 1883, after the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...
. Relations between both states started with the
Coolie Trade Coolie (also spelled koelie, kouli, khuli, khulie, kuli, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a pejorative term used for low-wage labourers, typically those of Indian or Chinese descent. The word ''coolie'' was first used in the 16th century by Europ ...
and matured during the ‘Hundred Years weakness and poverty’ (Wang, 1993) from the 1840s to 1949 of the impoverished Qing China, followed by a republic divided by civil wars and invaded by Japan. After the establishment of the
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
, Peru maintained its relations with the new
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
government. In 1944, the diplomatic status of the two countries was raised to embassy level, and high-level officials of the two countries exchanged frequent visits in the 1950s and 1960s. As a result of the
Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...
, Peru closed its embassy in Beijing in 1946.


Relations since 1971

After the establishment of
Juan Velasco Alvarado Juan Francisco Velasco Alvarado (June 16, 1910 – December 24, 1977) was a Peruvian Army general, general who served as the President of Peru after a successful 1968 Peruvian coup d'état, coup d'état against Fernando Belaúnde's presidency ...
's Revolutionary Government, Peru established relations with the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
on November 2, 1971, with the
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
severing its relations and closing its embassy in
Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
as a result, and the PRC opening its embassy the following year. As such, Peru became the third
Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
n country to recognize the
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
-based government. Since the establishment of relations between Peru and the PRC, the South American country has adhered to the
One China ''One China'' is a phrase describing the relationship between the People's Republic of China (PRC) based on mainland China, and the Republic of China (ROC) based on the Taiwan Area. "One China" asserts that there is only one ''de jure'' Ch ...
policy. In May 1978, the ROC established the "Far East Trade Center" in Lima to promote bilateral trade. On November 5, 1990, President
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenji Fujimori Fujimori (26 July 1938 – 11 September 2024) was a Peruvian politician, professor, and engineer who served as the 54th president of Peru from 1990 to 2000.* * * * * * * Born in Lima, Fujimori was the country's fir ...
approved Supreme Executive Order No. RE014, agreeing to change the name of "Far East Trade Center" to " Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Peru". On March 3, 1994, Peru established a " Taipei Trade Office" in Taiwan. Peru and the PRC signed a
free trade agreement A free trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating state (polity), states. There are two types of trade agreements: Bilateralism, bilateral and Multilateralism, m ...
in April 2009. The agreement was officially ratified by both countries governments on December 6, 2009, and came into effect on March 1, 2010. As of 2025, Chinese investment in Peru is primarily in the resources sector and predominantly mining-related.
President of Peru The president of Peru (), officially the constitutional president of the Republic of Peru (), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is the head of the executive branch and is the supreme head of the Peruvian Armed ...
Dina Boluarte Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra (; born 31 May 1962) is a Peruvian politician, civil servant, and lawyer who has been serving as the 64th president of Peru since 2022. She had served as the Vice President of Peru, first vice president and minister ...
pays a state visit to China to meet with Chinese President and
CCP General Secretary The general secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party ( zh, s=中国共产党中央委员会总书记, p=Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì) is the leader of the Chinese Communist Party ...
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...
from June 25, 2024, to June 29, 2024. During a November 2024 visit by Xi Jinping to Peru, Boluarte and Xi celebrated the opening of the
Port of Chancay The Port of Chancay is a shipping terminal located in Chancay, Peru. It was developed by Cosco Shipping Ports Chancay Perú S.A., a corporation made up by State-owned enterprises of China, Chinese state-owned shipping and logistics company COSCO Shi ...
, which is part of the
Belt and Road Initiative The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI or B&R), known in China as the One Belt One Road and sometimes referred to as the New Silk Road, is a global infrastructure development strategy adopted by the government of China in 2013 to invest in more t ...
. Xi described the port as the beginning of a new maritime-land corridor between China and Latin America. The port was built by
COSCO Shipping Ports COSCO Shipping Ports Limited, stylized as COSCO SHIPPING Ports is a Hong Kong listed company and investor in ports. The company is formerly known as COSCO Pacific Limited and was an indirect subsidiary of COSCO and now part of its successor, COSC ...
.


Subnational relations

Peru is represented in the
Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China The special administrative regions (SAR) of the People's Republic of China are one of four types of province-level divisions of the People's Republic of China directly under the control of its Central People's Government (State Counci ...
at a local level by the Consulate-General of Peru in Hong Kong, which is also accredited to
Macau Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...
. Macau is, nevertheless, also represented by an
honorary consulate A consul is an official representative of a government who resides in a foreign country to assist and protect citizens of the consul's country, and to promote and facilitate commercial and diplomatic relations between the two countries. A consu ...
. Relations with the regions are carried out within the framework of relations with the People's Republic of China.


Hong Kong

Hong Kong–Peru relations are carried out under the larger context of relations with China and date back to the British era of the region. Many
Chinese Peruvians Chinese Peruvians, also known as ''tusán'' (a loanword from ), are Peruvian citizens whose ancestors came from China. Due to acculturation, most third and fourth generation Chinese Peruvians do not speak the language of their ancestors. Howeve ...
are descendants of
coolie Coolie (also spelled koelie, kouli, khuli, khulie, kuli, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a pejorative term used for low-wage labourers, typically those of Indian people, Indian or Chinese descent. The word ''coolie'' was first used in the 16th cent ...
s that came from
East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
, including then British Hong Kong. Recorded voyages of coolie ships to Peru include the ''Lady Montagne'' (February 17, 1850; left with 450 coolies on board), the ''Albert'' (September 7, 1850; 156 coolies), the ''Victory'' (December 6, 1851; 335 coolies) the ''Beatrice'' (January 20, 1852; 300 coolies), the ''Frederich'' (January 19, 1869; 379 coolies), etc. In 1870, the
Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the United Kingdom, British The Crown, Crown in British Hong Kong, Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council of Hong Kong, Executiv ...
,
Richard Graves MacDonnell Sir Richard Graves MacDonnell (; 3 September 1814 – 5 February 1881) was an Anglo-Irish lawyer, judge and colonial governor. His posts as governor included Governor of the British Settlements in West Africa, Governor of Saint Vincent, Gov ...
, accused the Peruvian consul in China, César A. del Río, of being involved in this trade after it was outlawed. In the 1960s, Peru established honorary consulates in British Hong Kong. A Peruvian delegation of the Public Fishmeal and Fish Oil Marketing Company () visited Hong Kong in 1970 to study the mainland Chinese market up close. This resulted in the opening of a Commercial Office in Beijing in September of the following year as a prelude of the formalisation of relations in November. In 1991, Hong Kong was visited by Minister of Economy and Finance
Carlos Boloña Carlos Boloña Behr (27 July 1950 – 17 October 2018) was a Peruvian economist and politician. He served as the Ministry of Economy and Finance (Peru), Minister of Economy and Finance from 1991 to 1993, and again from July to November 2000 under ...
and President
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenji Fujimori Fujimori (26 July 1938 – 11 September 2024) was a Peruvian politician, professor, and engineer who served as the 54th president of Peru from 1990 to 2000.* * * * * * * Born in Lima, Fujimori was the country's fir ...
. In 1997,
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Alberto Pandolfi Alberto Ítalo Luis Pandolfi Arbulú (born 20 August 1940 in Lima) is a Peruvian businessman and politician who served as Prime Minister of Peru twice from 3 April 1996 to 4 June 1998, and from 21 August 1998 to 3 January 1999, under President Al ...
represented Peru at the
Hong Kong handover ceremony The handover ceremony of Hong Kong in 1997 officially marked the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the People's Republic of China. It was an internationally televised event with the ceremony ...
. In 2008, an agreement was signed aiming at the negotiation of a
free trade agreement A free trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating state (polity), states. There are two types of trade agreements: Bilateralism, bilateral and Multilateralism, m ...
between both regions. Said negotiations started in 2023. In 2022, Peruvian exports were valued at
US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
262 million, while Hong Kong's exports were valued at US$25 million.


Macau

Macau–Peru relations ( zh, t=澳门与秘鲁关系, p=Àomén yǔ bìlǔ guānxì; ; ) are also carried out under the larger context of relations with China and date back to the Portuguese era of the region. Similar to neighbouring
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, the early history of relations took place in the context of the coolie trade and within Peru's relations with
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
. From 1849 to 1857, a large number of ships left for
Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists ...
, until the trade was suspended by the British and Chinese authorities. This meant that from 1860 onwards, a second wave of Chinese immigration to Peru took place with Macau serving as its exclusive starting point. The last ship to leave to Peru was the Peruvian ''Lola'', who left in July 1874 and reached Peru with 6 coolies dying in the journey. A year before, the Overseas Ministry had prohibited the trade of coolies to Peru and
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
due to the conditions they were subject to upon arrival. Peru is a recurring participant in the annual ''Macao International Trade and Investment Fair'', where trade between both regions is promoted.


Taiwan

Due to its official relations with mainland China, Peru ''de jure'' recognises Taiwan as part of China. However, since 1978, relations between Peru and the ROC are unofficially maintained through representative offices in
Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...
and
Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
.


High-level visits

High-level visits from China to Peru *CCP General Secretary and President
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...
(2014) *Chief Executive of Hong Kong
Leung Chun-ying Leung Chun-ying ( zh, t=梁振英; born 12 August 1954), also known as CY Leung, is a Hong Kong politician and chartered surveyor who has served as vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Confe ...
(2014) *CCP General Secretary and President Xi Jinping (2024) High-level visits from Peru to China *President of Congress Víctor Joy Way (1997) *Prime Minister
Alberto Pandolfi Alberto Ítalo Luis Pandolfi Arbulú (born 20 August 1940 in Lima) is a Peruvian businessman and politician who served as Prime Minister of Peru twice from 3 April 1996 to 4 June 1998, and from 21 August 1998 to 3 January 1999, under President Al ...
(1997) *Minister
Carlos Boloña Carlos Boloña Behr (27 July 1950 – 17 October 2018) was a Peruvian economist and politician. He served as the Ministry of Economy and Finance (Peru), Minister of Economy and Finance from 1991 to 1993, and again from July to November 2000 under ...
(1991) *President
Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenji Fujimori Fujimori (26 July 1938 – 11 September 2024) was a Peruvian politician, professor, and engineer who served as the 54th president of Peru from 1990 to 2000.* * * * * * * Born in Lima, Fujimori was the country's fir ...
(1991 & 1999) *President
Alejandro Toledo Alejandro Celestino Toledo Manrique (; born 28 March 1946) is a Peruvian former politician who served as President of Peru, from 2001 to 2006. He gained international prominence after leading the opposition against president Alberto Fujimori, w ...
(2005) *President
Ollanta Humala Ollanta Moisés Humala Tasso (; born 27 June 1962) is a Peruvian politician and former military officer who served as president of Peru from 2011 to 2016. Originally a socialist and left-wing nationalist, he is considered to have shifted towar ...
(2013) *President
Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Godard (; born 3 October 1938), also known simply as PPK (), is a Peruvian economist, public administrator, and former politician who served as the 59th President of Peru from 2016 to 2018. He served as Prime Minister of ...
(2016)


Resident diplomatic missions

* China has an
embassy A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a Sovereign state, state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase ...
in
Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
. * Peru has an embassy in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
and consulates-general in
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, and
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
.Embassy of Peru in Beijing
/ref>


See also

*
List of ambassadors of China to Peru The ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Peru; is the official representative of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Peru. The ambassador in Lima, appointed by the Chairm ...
* List of ambassadors of Peru to China * China–Peru Free Trade Agreement


References


Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:China-Peru relations
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...