South American countries may be a long way from China, but the Chinese like to use the quote "A bosom friend afar brings a distant land near", from Tang Dynasty poet Wang Bo 1,300 years ago, to describe the friendship.

Premier Li Keqiang's current trip to Latin America, less than a year after one by President Xi Jinping, is considered a testament of China's commitment to the relationship.

As Li concluded his visit to Chile, the last stop of a four-nation tour that also included Brazil, Colombia and Peru, many of the news reports have focused on the increasingly mutually beneficial trade and investment ties, such as South America's planned transcontinental railway project.