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China and Guyana
Kaieteur News – The US is sure to get a chill. It is at risk of losing its ‘Big Brother’ status, caretaker role, in Guyana. Chinese Ambassador to Guyana, Excellency Yang Yang laid out what we interpret to be a China-Guyana blueprint, a tight working relationship between Beijing and Georgetown. Excellency Yang made for stirrings of excitement locally, and more than passing interest in Washington.
“In the past fifty days, I experienced the hot hospitality from the Guyanese government and the people, the scorching hot weather, and hotness of cooperation between China and Guyana across various sectors. China has and will continue to treat Guyana as good friend, good partner, and good brother and sister. So, let us work together to shape an even brighter future for our bilateral relations.” The Chinese ambassador reminds us of a former American ambassador, Excellency Sarah Ann Lynch. The American was a good soldier, always punching above her weight. In Ambassador Yang, we recognise a successor in the making. Undoubtedly, Guyana has been blessed, with not one superpower, but two vying for her attentions, wanting to be in her best considerations.
That’s one side of the coin, for the Americans have already made their position clear. There is room in Guyana for only one superpower elephant. Though leaders of the PPPC Government may deceive themselves into believing that it’s their sure handling of the always delicate nature of foreign relationships, it is primarily the oil and gold wealth that attracts the Big Powers. A quick look confirms that every member of the exclusive global nuclear club is in Guyana today, and jostling to get a broader presence on the ground. There is America leading the way, with a virtual stranglehold, and there’s Great Britain and France, and China and India to a lesser extent. Despite the horrors of Gaza, and the gruesome ordeals of the Palestinians, the Israelis are also here. Pakistan doesn’t have much of a presence, and North Korea is out, but the rest of the Big Boys Club are here and all thirsting for a bigger piece of Guyana. India may be okay to the US, but China clouds its vision with a red haze. The government is playing a clever game, one that could turn out to be dangerous for this country. When elephants are on the march, it is wise for the people in charge of the Guyana Government to be astute enough not to get caught napping on the ground. That should be Guyana’s vision, agenda.
Don’t tell that to the Chinese, however. “We will encourage more qualified, reputable, and capable enterprises to invest in Guyana, encourage them to actively participate in the modernisation, and encourage them to deliver greater achievements through high-quality Belt and Road cooperation,” Ambassador Yang stated. For the Chinese ambassador to dare to say, “Belt and Road cooperation” in Guyana, could not have been missed by the US, nor well-received by its people embedded here. China’s Belt and Road vision and programme means competition for the US. Too much of it, and too close for comfort due to encroachment in areas held as sensitive home ground by the US. The PPPC Government should be careful not to be seen as being too smart for its own good, i.e., playing one friendly superpower against the other. There is never enough room for more than one, and with matters fevered in Washington and Beijing, whatever the government is up to here, it could be risking losing corn and husk.
The Chinese have a place here, but the more pronounced it is, the more the Americans are sure not to take that in stride. The strategy in the upper elevations of the PPPC Government appears to have one objective in mind: walking a tightrope between two not-too-friendly superpowers. Where is the advantage in that for Guyana? Guyana is not going to get more for its oil, gold, and bauxite, from either of the two, which must always be the sole objective. The US is well-entrenched here and is not going anywhere, nor prepared to give an inch (or a dollar). The Chinese talk a good game, but always for their own benefit. The Guyana Government had better get sober quickly.
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