China has firmly defended its 53-year relationship with Jamaica, rejecting concerns raised by United States ambassador-designate Kari Lake and insisting that cooperation between the two countries is rooted in mutual respect, equality and shared development rather than geopolitical competition.
In a statement issued through its embassy in Kingston, Beijing said its partnership with Jamaica has consistently been guided by the principles of “equality, mutual benefit and common development,” stressing that its engagement with Latin America and the Caribbean is based on openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation.
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“Our cooperation does not target any third party and should not be subject to interference by any third party,” the embassy said, adding that each country has the sovereign right to determine its own international partnerships.
The response followed comments made by Lake during her confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where she pledged to counter China’s growing influence in Jamaica. She said she would work to ensure that Jamaica continues to choose “transparency, sovereignty, and partnership with the United States over dependence on actors whose interests do not align with our shared values.”
Highlighting the scope of its relationship with Jamaica, the Chinese embassy said bilateral trade exceeded US$1.4 billion in 2025, while Chinese companies have invested more than US$2.1 billion in the island, creating over 40,000 direct jobs, with more than 80 percent of employees being Jamaicans.
The embassy also pointed to several major infrastructure and development projects, including the Hugh Lawson Shearer Building at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, the Western Children’s Hospital and the North-South Highway, describing them as enduring symbols of China-Jamaica friendship. It added that more than 3,000 Jamaicans have benefited from Chinese scholarships and exchange programmes, while the Confucius Institute at The University of the West Indies has trained over 2,000 Jamaicans in the Chinese language.
China also referenced its humanitarian assistance following Hurricane Melissa, including emergency financial aid, relief supplies and the deployment of the Chinese Navy hospital ship Ark Silk Road, whose medical team reportedly treated more than 7,500 patients.
The embassy rejected longstanding U.S. criticism that Chinese investment creates debt dependence. During a Caribbean visit in 2025, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused China of engaging in “predatory practices” by financing projects with loans that countries struggle to repay and by relying heavily on Chinese labor rather than local workers.
China, however, argued that its cooperation has delivered tangible benefits to the Jamaican people and urged the United States to respect the independent foreign policy choices of Caribbean nations.
“The resources of Latin America and the Caribbean belong to the people there; the path of those countries should be chosen by their people, and the choice of friends is a decision for those countries alone,” the embassy stated.
