US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has urged the people of South America to resist offers of investment and aid from China and Russia, reports Voice of America.

The US believes this is a time of opportunity for South America ‘to cement a future of democracy, prosperity and peace for this hemisphere’.

Pompeo warned that China and Russia, both of whom have invested in South American countries, bring corrosion and corruption to the economy, pointing out a dam project in Ecuador, financed by Chinese money, that has not been successful. He said nearly every top official involved in the dam’s construction is either imprisoned or sentenced on bribery charges.

He accused Russia of escalating unrest in Venezuela by propping up the regime of Nicolas Maduro and sending soldiers to establish a training center.

“We shouldn’t stand for Russia escalating an already precarious situation in these ways,” he said.

He also said Russia has sold arms and opened a police training center in Nicaragua. “The results of Russia’s involvement in Nicaragua, to put it mildly, aren’t good,” Pompeo said.

In contrast, Pompeo said the United States is establishing fair trade agreements with South American nations.