Prime Minister Gaston Browne said Thursday that Antigua and Barbuda should stand by its relationship with China even if doing so brings consequences, describing Beijing as the country’s most important development partner.
Speaking during the handover ceremony for the Chinese-funded Pelican Court housing development, Browne urged the country to defend the friendship in international forums and continue strengthening bilateral ties despite geopolitical pressure.
He argued that China’s support over the past three decades had helped build infrastructure and improve living conditions, and that Antigua and Barbuda owed its development partner lasting gratitude.
“There is no other country that has contributed more to our development than the People’s Republic of China during the last three decades,” Browne said.
The prime minister referred to geopolitical threats surrounding the relationship but did not identify a country, organisation or specific punitive measure in that portion of his address.
He said Antigua and Barbuda should continue supporting the partnership because China had provided assistance when the country needed help developing its economic and social infrastructure.
Without those contributions, he argued, the country’s progress would have been significantly different and its people’s quality of life poorer.
Browne said gratitude should translate into a willingness to defend the relationship, including when that position carries consequences.
“So let us continue to march on with China as our most important development partner,” he said.
The remarks came as officials gathered for the handover of Pelican Court, an EC$50 million development financed through a Chinese grant. The project comprises 150 two-bedroom homes and forms part of the redevelopment of Booby Alley in the Point community.
Browne described the development as China’s most socially impactful project in Antigua and Barbuda to date, linking its significance to improvements in the lives of vulnerable residents.
He thanked China on behalf of the prospective residents and the wider country, saying the project reflected his administration’s commitment to improving living standards, including for the poorest residents.
The prime minister said the transformation involved more than new buildings and climate-resilient construction. Its purpose, he said, was to improve the quality of life of the people who would live there.
Browne pledged to continue deepening relations with China, presenting the housing development as a practical demonstration of the partnership’s value to Antigua and Barbuda.
This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: PM Browne vows to defend China ties even if Antigua and Barbuda faces consequences.