Beijing was caught by surprise on 3 January. Despite the military buildup, threats and missed deadlines, Qiu Xiaoqi, Beijing’s special envoy for Latin American affairs, met with Maduro hours before the intervention, discussing their all-weather relationship and bilateral projects, exchanging gifts in a business-as-usual diplomatic exchange with no indication there was concern about impending US military action. China’s official media was muted in the immediate aftermath of the strike, indicating that time was needed for an internal political assessment process to determine how to respond.
