Trump Administration Warns Peru That a Chinese Port Is Costing Its Sovereignty

The Trump administration warned that Peru is losing sovereignty over a Chinese-owned port near its capital city, after a local judge ruled that the port is exempt from some regulatory oversight. 

“Concerned about latest reports that Peru could be powerless to oversee Chancay, one of its largest ports, which is under jurisdiction of predatory Chinese owners,” the US State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said in a post on X on Wednesday. “Let this be a cautionary tale for the region and the world: cheap Chinese money costs sovereignty.”

The warning is the most direct criticism yet from the Trump administration of Peru’s close ties to China, which is the South American nation’s top trading partner followed by the US. At issue is the Chinese-owned Chancay port, which cost $1.3 billion to build and was inaugurated by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2024. The port, which helps expedite shipments to China from South America, is operated by Chinese-owned Cosco Shipping Ports. 

While a local judge ruled against state oversight, the head of Peru’s infrastructure regulator Ositran, Veronica Zambrano, has been vocal in criticizing the decision, saying it will leave users of the port unprotected. Ositran oversees Peru’s other major ports, which are concessions on public land, while Chancay is a privately-owned port. 

“We understand that what has happened, because we have yet to be notified, is that there is a lower court ruling accepting their request, which is not to be supervised by Ositran,” Zambrano said. 

Gonzalo Rios, general manager at Cosco’s Peruvian unit, told local radio RPP that the port had sued to defend its rights as a private port and that users will still be able to file complaints in court or with the consumer protection agency.

China has invested heavily in Peru in recent years, including in the electricity and mining sectors as well as shipping. Meanwhile, the US has designated Peru as a major non-NATO ally and is negotiating a contract worth as much as $1.5 billion to be paid by Peru to build a new naval base for the Andean country just a few miles from Chancay.

Newly installed US Ambassador to Peru Bernie Navarro also criticized Peru. “Everything has a price. In the long term, what was cheap is costly,” Navarro wrote on X. “There is no higher price to pay than losing sovereignty.” 

He also recently posted a photo with Peruvian President Jose Jeri eating cheese burgers and calling it a “changing the menu,” in an apparent reference to unreported meetings that the Peruvian president held in Chinese restaurants.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

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