NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis said yesterday that among the matters to be discussed at the CARICOM Heads of Government meeting this week will be the forward movement and strengthening of the China-CARICOM relationship.
Davis, along with a delegation, traveled over the weekend to attend the 33rd Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in San Pedro Town, Ambergris Caye, Belize.
There will be some discussions on that and to balance the interest of the Americans and the other persons who may have some concerns about their presence in the region.
– Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis
Among several of the issues expected to be discussed during the week will be whether regional leaders can come up with one policy with respect to their relationship with China.
“The idea and the view of the CARICOM leaders [is] that we should strengthen it,” Davis said in a video address about the meeting.
“So, there will be some discussions on that and to balance the interest of the Americans and the other persons who may have some concerns about their presence in the region.”
The issue comes amidst continued concerns about China’s geopolitical strategy and its attempts to increase economic and political influence in the Caribbean and around the world.
In November, Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell assured that The Bahamas is not in the middle of a geopolitical banter between the United States and China.
United States General Glen VanHerck last year accused China of pursuing an aggressive geopolitical strategy that seeks to undermine US influence around the globe and shape the international environment to its advantage.
VanHerck specifically mentioned China’s relations with Mexico and The Bahamas, which he referred to as “an important partner”.
The Chinese Embassy, however, hit back at the comments and chastised the US not to treat the Caribbean as “a backyard that no one else should get involved in”.
The Chinese Embassy in The Bahamas has maintained that its relationships in the Caribbean, including with The Bahamas, are not an attempt to undermine the US or any other major world power.
CARICOM agenda
Davis said he also intends to raise the issue of climate change at the meetings, noting that the subject needs to be kept at the forefront of discussions.
He said the issue of how to reduce and monetize the region’s carbon credits should be discussed and a policy formed among Caribbean countries, given that the region has the largest carbon sink in the world.
Additionally, Davis said the agenda will include discussions on the region’s tourism policy — with The Bahamas being the chair of the tourism sector for the Caribbean — as well as an agricultural policy specifically to deal with the poultry industry.
He said he will officially introduce himself as prime minister to CARICOM heads and will share the initiatives his administration has planned for The Bahamas.
Davis traveled with Mitchell, Minister for Grand Bahama Ginger Moxey, Ministry of Tourism Parliamentary Secretary John Pinder II and High Commissioner to CARICOM Leslia Miller-Brice.
The prime minister sought to assure Bahamians that “no country is an island”, and that meetings such as this are important to build strong diplomatic relationships.
“We are very vulnerable as a region, and therefore the more together, the stronger we are,” he said.
“That is the key to us as a unit — to bring to bear our collective energies, ideas [and] thoughts.”
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