During a meeting at the United Nations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the region "is the home of Latin American people and is not the 'backyard' of any country."
China will always be a "trustworthy" friend and partner of Latin America, its foreign minister told his Bolivian counterpart, as Beijing seeks to improve its position in a region historically under the sphere of influence of the United States.
"Latin America is the home of Latin American people and is not the 'backyard' of any country," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said during a meeting at the United Nations on Tuesday, according to a statement from his ministry.
China wants to "continuously elevate the China-Bolivia strategic partnership," Wang told Bolivian Foreign Minister Celinda Sosa.
Bolivia, which established diplomatic ties with Beijing in 1985, is one of many South American countries that have established economic ties with China through debt and investment.
The resource-rich country owes China, the world's largest bilateral lender, more than $1.7 billion, according to World Bank data.
Chinese companies have invested another $6 billion, according to statistics from the American Enterprise Institute think tank , mainly in Bolivia's metals, energy and transport sectors.
According to State Department data, U.S. foreign direct investment in Bolivia is around $430 million, mainly in the oil and gas and manufacturing sectors.
Chinese investments in the region, especially in energy and infrastructure, challenge US influence.
After taking office, Trump was quick to lash out at Panama over the Central American country's ties to China, sending a message to Secretary of State Marco Rubio to end Chinese influence over the Panama Canal or face U.S. action.
Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino later said his country would not renew its membership of Chinese President Xi Jinping's flagship Belt and Road Initiative, much to Beijing's chagrin.
Trump had refused to rule out using military force to retake the Panama Canal on the eve of Rubio's visit.
"China supports Latin American countries in defending their sovereignty, independence and national dignity," Wang said.
He also congratulated Bolivia for becoming a member of BRICS, a group of developing countries founded by Brazil, Russia, India and China to compete with a Western-dominated world order. The group has since grown to also include South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump has repeatedly warned the BRICS against challenging the dominance of the "mighty US dollar," threatening members with a 100% tariff "if they want to play with the dollar."
But Brazil last week joined the ranks of Latin American states in giving in to one of Trump's demands: scrap plans to push for a common currency while he holds the BRICS presidency, so as not to trigger a backlash from Trump.
China, Brazil's biggest export market, buys nearly $70 billion more from Latin America's largest economy than the United States, according to data from the UN's COMTRADE, but it still does not want to jeopardize the $37 billion worth of goods it does sell to the U.S. market.
Trump has continued to threaten to end trade ties with the region as China seeks to cultivate deeper strategic partnerships with individual Latin American nations, offering the region an alternative pole of economic support.
The Republican leader has also threatened Mexico and Colombia with punitive trade measures if they do not take stronger measures to curb illegal immigration into the United States.
Mexico has agreed to reinforce its northern border with 10,000 members of the National Guard to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has reversed his decision to turn away U.S. military planes carrying deported migrants, moving the country back from the brink of a trade war with its biggest export market.
