As part of the Belt and Road Initiative, a new mega port just north of the Peruvian capital Lima is set to commence operation at the end of this year, with its backers expecting it to become the central Pacific-facing hub connecting Latin America with Asia.
Built by the Chinese state-owned conglomerate COSCO Shipping, the multi-purpose port in Chancay is poised to be a new trade hub that could transform Peru's fortunes and radically change the lives of the people living in and around this sleepy fishing town.
After five years under construction by a consortium led by COSCO Shipping, it is beginning to take shape.
Some 27,100-meter tall cranes have been brought directly from China for this port. Peruvian crane operators are given a tour and look on in wonder. They will learn how to operate these state-of-the-art automated cranes.
But once up and running, the four terminals will be a people-free zone. The idea is that fully automated cranes will run back and forth on tracks, loading and unloading containers directed from a control room.
It's part of the technological leap for Peru that the port represents, says COSCO Shipping's institutional relations manager Mario de las Casas.
"For Peru, it is crucial because this port can generate many other opportunities for growth, from connectivity, to railways, and industries. Many logistics companies want to position themselves here because this is going to be the logistics hub of South America," the manager told China Global Television Network (CGTN).
Uniquely positioned in the middle of the region's Pacific seaboard, it will be the first port in the region to have the capacity to berth some of the world's biggest cargo ships. This colossal project is so ambitious that it is expected to dominate maritime traffic along the Pacific coast of South America.
In its initial phase, the port is expected to handle one million containers and six million tonnes of loose cargo a year.
"The most important thing is that it will be a port that will have a direct route from Chancay to Shanghai or from Chancay to Busan - but directly to Asia. You're not going to have to go all the way to Mexico or all the way to Long Beach, California, to cross the Pacific. This project was born with an established route from Chancay to Shanghai," said the manager.
The biggest selling point is that those new routes will shave days, even weeks, off transit times across the ocean.
By slashing transit times by 10 to 12 days, the Chancay Multipurpose Port Terminal will cut costs and make Peruvian products - from textiles and minerals to fruit and vegetables - more competitive, as well as imports cheaper. It also opens up a faster route for neighboring countries - like Ecuador and Chile - along the Pacific seaboard while offering Brazil the chance to export high-demand soya and beef through Peru.
But it is Peruvian farmers - especially those in the Huaral valley next to Chancay - who could benefit most.
"Huaral is the capital of agriculture in Peru, we have almost 80 percent of all fruit and vegetable products. We have pitayas, avocados, vegetables like lettuce, among other things. So the fact that the transportation will take less time gives us the opportunity to do the packing at less cost. That is a huge advantage for us, for producers," said local farmer and agricultural consultant Percy Perez.
Perez farms a very particular type of cactus fruit in the arid desert on the edge of the valley. With the megaport's imminent opening, he eyes new opportunities to get his products to the vast Chinese market.
"China is one of the largest consumer countries in the world of pitaya, so imagine the opportunity that we have as pitaya producers to offer this fruit to China. It means a lot to us," said the farmer.
Currently, China is Peru's top trading partner, its biggest export market, and the main source of imported goods. Meanwhile, Peru ranks as China's fourth-largest trade partner in Latin America. In 2023, their bilateral trade reached a total of 37.691 billion U.S. dollars, marking a 0.8 percent increase compared to the previous year.
Peru’s Chancay mega port to become Latin America’s gateway to Asia
Peru’s Chancay mega port to become Latin America’s gateway to Asia
European countries and international organizations have widely condemned Israeli air strikes on Lebanon which have resulted in more than 1,000 civilian casualties, including children, and have caused damage to civilian infrastructure.
Israel launched large-scale air raids across Lebanon on Wednesday, saying it had carried out 100 strikes within a matter of minutes on positions they claimed belonged to the Hezbollah group.
Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health reported more than 300 had been killed in the attacks, with roughly 1,150 wounded.
The attacks came after a two-week ceasefire agreement was reached by the United States and Iran. However, both Israel and the United States have maintained Lebanon is not included in the truce.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Thursday accused Israel of violating international law to carry out the air strikes on Lebanon, calling the attacks "a shame on the conscience of all humanity".
Earlier on Thursday, Albares announced that Spain would reopen its embassy in Tehran in the hope of achieving peace in the region.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that Israel had "disrespected" the two-week ceasefire with Iran by carrying out the strikes.
Meloni also warned of further economic turmoil if U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran flare up again, and said the European Union should consider a temporary suspension of the Stability and Growth Pact, an agreement which ensures economic stability within the European Union, in order to handle the potential monetary consequences.
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday warned that Israel's military operations in Lebanon could cause the entire peace process as a whole to fail, telling a press conference in Berlin "that must not happen."
Merz announced that the German government will resume direct talks with Iran in order to support the newly agreed two-week ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.
He also stated that a window of opportunity for a negotiated solution has opened for the first time since the outbreak of the conflict, though he cautioned that the situation in the Middle East remains "fragile."
The UK's Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Thursday that she is "deeply troubled" by Israel's escalating attacks on Lebanon, expressing hope that Lebanon will be included in the current ceasefire arrangement.
Cooper also reiterated the importance of reopening the Strait of Hormuz, saying that the effective closure of the vital shipping chokepoint had been "deeply damaging for the world", while stressing how crucial the passageway is to the entire global economy.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot described the Israeli strikes on Lebanon as "intolerable."
In a radio interview, Barrot said France strongly condemns "the massive strikes" which seriously undermine the temporary ceasefire reached earlier between the United States and Iran. The European Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Thursday that Israel's latest strikes on Lebanon, which killed hundreds overnight, could not be considered as an act of self-defense.
"Israel's right to defend itself does not justify inflicting such massive destruction," Kallas said in a post on the social media platform X. She warned that the strikes risk further destabilizing the region and added that Israel's actions were putting the U.S.-Iran ceasefire under severe strain.
Despite this widespread criticism, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Thursday there would be no ceasefire in Lebanon, signaling that Israel will continue its military operations while pursuing planned negotiations with Beirut.
"There is no ceasefire in Lebanon," Netanyahu said in a video address to residents of northern Israel, adding: "We continue to strike Hezbollah with force and we will not stop until we restore your security."
Netanyahu said he had instructed his cabinet to open direct talks with Lebanon following what he described as repeated requests from the Lebanese government.
The negotiations, which are expected to begin next week in Washington, aim to disarm Hezbollah and reach a "historic and lasting" peace agreement, Netanyahu added. Delegations will be led by the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors to the United States.
Israel and Lebanon have no formal diplomatic relations and technically remain in a state of war.
European Leaders widely condemn Israeli attacks on Lebanon
