What China and Russia are looking for in colonist countries

The Admiral in charge of the Navy's fleet in the South American waters appeared before a Senate armed services committee that was covered by C-SPAN and aired over TV the other night.  I happened to have watched it.  I think the Admiral expressed a point of view about the interests of China and Russia in developing an on-going relationship with countries in South America and for that matter, Africa, too that would seem hostile to our own interests in these self-same countries. In short, the Admiral seemed to be arguing that each of these countries must choose whether to side with either China or Russia. as if the interests of both of them are antithetical to our own interests in developing relationships with some South American country.

I take it to be prima facie obvious that China is interested in the countries it approaches to develop each's natural resources to be used in its own products and goods; and that Russia is interested in reestablishing its empire as it was under the Soviet Union-Russia, headquartered in Moscow.
China and Russia, both, would establish colonies in their host countries of their own citizenry, as each has done in the past of countries they have sought to control so as to achieve their homeland goals.
That is, China in order to secure a host nation's complicity to make available its own natural assets, will extend gifts and remunerations, i.e., whatever it takes to satisfy the host's reasonable demands.
And Russia, in order to utilize the host's capabilities and potentials, will seek to meet its demands list.

That some nation in South America enters into a long-term agreement with either China or Russia ought not be taken to preclude its willingness to engage in trade and cooperation with the United States as a trading partner and/or an ally.  To assume that it does compromises the power of the US in accomplishing its own aims through a variety of dealings with potential partners and friendly governments.  Put succinctly, the US is powerful enough to fashion relationships with any country, independently of that country's supposed commitments to work with some other countries in pursuit of their intentions and purposes.