OF THE 25 countries around the world, all smallish, which choose to recognise Taiwan rather than China, almost half are in Latin America or the Caribbean.（1）In the past, their motives were often rooted in shared anti-communism. Nowadays, it is usually a matter of money. So it is with Paraguay. When Chen Shui-bian, Taiwan's president, visited the l________（A） South American republic last weekend he paid homage[1] to the origins of their friendship at a reception, going out of his way to greet the grandson of Alfredo Stroessner, Paraguay's fascistic dictator of 1954-89. Then he got out his cheque book.
In the past few years, Taiwan has given Paraguay grants of $30m for public housing and $20m for a new Congress building. Other donations—only Japan and Germany are more g________（B）—pay for scholarships. Two Taiwanese banks offered a $400m loan, making the island Paraguay's biggest bilateral creditor.
Paraguay has failed to turn this charity into a development partnership. In 1990, the average Taiwanese was three times better off than the average Paraguayan; now the g________（C） is more than sevenfold. Of the 10,000 Taiwanese who migrated to Paraguay, many of them in the 1980s, only half remain. Taiwanese investment comprises little more than an ailing[2] industrial park—partly because skilled labour is short. （2）Taiwanese experts have passed on technical advice, but their lessons were ignored, says Carlos Paris, a trade official.
（3）Meanwhile, China looms larger. Last year, it supplied a quarter of Paraguay's imports, second only to Brazil. It buys much of the country's soya crop. For some Paraguayans, such as Jorge Samaniego, whose factory a________（D） Chinese motorcycles, lack of diplomatic ties is becoming a problem. It makes it harder for his Chinese suppliers to visit作者: 幽幽草 时间: 2007-8-7 11:26 标题: 《经济学家》读译参考:要施舍还是要中国三
与此同时，中国越来越势不可挡。（“loom large”是指“to seem important, worrying, and difficult to avoid”，意思是“似乎很重要，令人焦虑，而且不可避免”）去年，中国占巴拉圭进口总额的四分之一，仅次于巴西。中国还收购了该国一多半的大豆作物。巴中之间缺少邦交关系，已经成为困扰某些巴拉圭人的一个难题，比如乔治•萨马尼戈，他的工厂负责组装中国摩托车，可就是因为这个问题使得中国供应商前来访问难上加难。
Pressure to switch diplomatic recognition lay behind Mr Chen's visit. “People see China's economic b________（E） as an opportunity, but its voracious[3] appetite for energy and raw materials should be treated with caution,” he said. He unveiled a $250m fund to encourage Taiwanese firms to invest in the island's Latin American diplomatic allies. “We are talking about an investment plan. This is not dollar diplomacy,” said Mr Chen. （4）Perish the thought.
