ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – Prime Minister Gaston Browne has defended the choice of Caribbean nations to have diplomatic relations with China, dismissing solutions that they need to “rebalance” their relations between america and China.
“There are some who argue erroneously that nations within the Caribbean that assist China must rebalance. However I ask, what’s there to rebalance?” Browne stated as he spoke at a ceremony marking the 76th anniversary of the founding of the Individuals’s Republic of China (PRC).
Browne stated that whereas america is “an important nation” to the Caribbean when it comes to tourism and commerce, Beijing has been offering longstanding assist via grants, concessional loans, and infrastructure tasks.
“The USA is our largest supply marketplace for guests and items, and it performs an indispensable position in our improvement. On the identical time, China has been a benevolent accomplice, aiding us with important tasks in housing, training, and port improvement. There isn’t a battle right here, each relationships serve our nationwide pursuits,” Prime Minister Browne added.
He instructed the ceremony that Antigua and Barbuda will ot enable exterior powers to dictate its international coverage, reiterating that St. John’s upholds the precept of sovereignty.
“Once we allied lately with america on the (sale of the luxurious yacht) Alfa Nero matter, we did so as a result of we believed it was in our nationwide curiosity. China didn’t intervene, nor has it ever interfered, in our relationships with america. That’s what mutual respect appears like,” he stated.
Browne stated that China has constantly handled Antigua and Barbuda as an equal accomplice regardless of the huge disparity in measurement and inhabitants, citing his discussions with President Xi Jinping final 12 months.
“China, a rustic of 1.4 billion individuals, sits with us, a nation of 100,000, on the identical desk,” he stated, including, “that respect isn’t solely significant, it’s a mannequin of how international relations ought to work.
“What I noticed in China was not simply infrastructure, however the results of imaginative and prescient, resilience, and a individuals decided to chart their very own future. It’s a mannequin that evokes nations like ours,” he stated, highlighting Beijing’s assist for tasks that straight influence the lives of individuals right here.
He instructed the ceremony that some of the important of those tasks is the Booby Alley Housing Redevelopment, which the Chinese language authorities totally underwrites.
“This venture isn’t just about concrete and metal. It’s about lifting individuals out of poverty, restoring pleasure in a historic neighbourhood and proving that no group is forgotten,” he stated, describing the redevelopment as “a venture that touches the lives of our most susceptible residents”.
Browne stated China had additionally supplied assist for tasks such because the College of the West Indies 5 Islands Campus, which he known as “a gateway to increased training for our younger individuals,” the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, in addition to investments in ports and airports, strengthening Antigua & Barbuda’s potential as a transhipment and tourism hub within the Caribbean.
“These will not be token tasks. They’re pillars of our nation’s progress and symbols of what real partnership can obtain.”
China’s Ambassador to Antigua and Barbuda, Zhang Yanling, hailed her nation’s journey from hardship to international management, emphasising the dramatic transformation China has achieved via unity, self-discipline, and a deal with nationwide improvement.
“What occurred 76 years in the past marked the start of a brand new period, one the place the future of China was positioned firmly within the palms of the Chinese language individuals,” the Chinese language diplomat stated, pointing to important accomplishments in training, healthcare, aged care, and poverty discount.
She stated that life expectancy in China has greater than doubled since 1949 and acknowledged the continued assist of Antigua & Barbuda as a valued accomplice that shares her nation’s ideas of sovereignty, non-interference, and mutual respect.
