Let's take a little trip to the Bahamas and explore what a little Joe Biden-era neglect will get you.
A little over a week ago, officials from the island nation broke ground for a new speciality hospital, calling it a "new era for healthcare." It's supposed to take 30 to 36 months to complete.
The project will sit on 50 acres on New Providence Highway in Nassau. The hospital will have 200 beds with "emergency and intensive care services, modern diagnostic labs, and even the country’s first national reference morgue," which will ease pressure on nearby overcrowded facilities. It will also have have access to state-of-the-art technology and equipment that Health Minister Dr. Michael Darville says "will reduce the need for patients to seek care abroad, and it will allow our healthcare professionals to operate in an environment that supports the level of care that they’re trained to deliver."
Sounds like a good thing for the Bahamas, right?
Maybe it would be if China wasn't footing most of the bill. Because when China foots the bill, there are always more strings attached than last year's tangled Christmas tree lights. The reality is that it's more of the textbook debt-trap Chicom diplomacy that plagues the Western Hemisphere, only this time it's happening in a nation that's closest point is literally just 50 miles from Florida. Oh, and the Biden administration apparently just handed it over on a silver platter.
The healthcare system in the Bahamas isn't awful compared to some other similar nations, but it is no longer adequate enough for the aging population, and there is plenty of room to improve it. It's overcrowded, people are often faced with long wait times, and it's outdated with crumbling infrastructure and various equipment shortages. The Princess Margaret Hospital, which is currently the main facility in Nassau, was built in the 1950s. Patients often come to the United States for specific procedures, and nurses and other trained medical staff often move abroad to take better-paying jobs.
So, back to this New Providence Specialty Hospital. The framework for a deal between the Bahamas and China was signed last summer, and in January of this year the loan was locked in. But, as China does, this wasn't just a loan.
It was a concessional loan, meaning the terms were soft: a 2% interest rate over a 20-year period, after a 5-year grace period with no interest. Often managed by the Export–Import Bank of China, these loans are handed out as an act of "goodwill" and diplomacy, but the reality is that China uses them to build its own infrastructure, exploit natural resources, and expand its geopolitical influence.
And the Bahamas had to agree to more than just cash. First, the loan and any other financing is governed by Chinese law. That means any disputes must go to Beijing, not the Bahamas and not an international court. The country is essentially welcoming Chinese law onto its own soil, which could end up having a negative effect on its sovereignty down the line.
Second, there's a clause that says the state-owned China Railway Construction Corporation Ltd. must be the main contractor on the project. That company is currently on the United States Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)'s restricted investment list due its links to China’s military-industrial complex.
Third, there's a 50-50 labor clause, meaning that half of the workers on the project must be Chinese.
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Last March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio traveled to the Caribbean, and during a stop in Suriname, he described this kind of Chinese transaction perfectly when talking about the road on which he traveled. "They paid these people to build this road, and then they bring their workers. They bring their workers. They don't hire you," he said. "They bring their workers in to do all the work or they want you to borrow a bunch of money, and then they hold it over your head."
That's exactly what's happening in this situation.
In February of this year, United States Ambassador to The Bahamas Herschel Walker issued a statement asking the Bahamas to reconsider and work with the U.S. instead, promising a much better deal via private or public sources:
It doesn’t appear to be in the best of interests of The Bahamas to submit to Chinese law and labor standards on their own soil. It would be better to look at other financing options that adhere to international norms. President Trump believes in fair deals that benefit both nations, and the United States is committed to being the economic and security partner of choice. We stand ready to work with The Bahamas to help secure a better deal – whether from private or public sources – to provide the healthcare infrastructure Bahamians deserve.
After the groundbreaking for the hospital earlier this month, Walker issued another statement:
We are disappointed to see this project move forward so quickly when fundamental concerns about the terms of the deal remain unaddressed. I question the decision to rush forward with a deal that places the hospital financing under Chinese law and jurisdiction on Bahamian soil.
The United States remains committed to supporting healthcare infrastructure that truly serves Bahamian interests, under terms that respect Bahamian sovereignty, adhere to international norms, and mitigate project risks for The Bahamas. The United States’ offer to help The Bahamas secure better financing options — whether from public or private sources — remains on the table.”
The same day Walker issued that statement, the Bahamian government responded, stating that it has "taken note of the comments issued in what amounts to an unusual intervention by the United States Government in the public affairs of The Bahamas."
"The Government is deeply appreciative of the concern expressed for the upgrade of our health care facilities by United State authorities," it added. "These facilities will protect the millions of Americans who visit our shores, in addition to our own citizens."
And then it dropped this information:
Before reaching a funding agreement with the Government of the People’s Republic of China, the Government of The Bahamas engaged the United States Government on several occasions over a period of three years. Those efforts yielded no financing response that matched the urgency, scale, and certainty required to move this project forward. Faced with the pressing need to strengthen and modernise the public health care system, the Government took the decision to proceed in the best interests of the Bahamian people.
Any suggestion that the Government acted with undue haste is misplaced. This project was delayed while The Bahamas awaited a response, and to accept an offer at this stage would only produce further delay, something our national interest can ill afford.
Well, I did a little digging, and those three years actually began in 2022. As it turns out, the Bahamian government went shopping around for a lender. The United States, under Biden, essentially ignored them. China didn't. The United Kingdom made an attempt to buy in at the last minute, but it was too late. The Chinese deal was done.
Now, it's worth noting that China and the Bahamas have had diplomatic ties since 1997. Since 2021, under Prime Minister Philip Davis and his Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), those relations, which were initially pragmatic in nature, have grown even stronger, so it's possible he wanted to do the deal with China.
It's also worth noting that the local opposition, the more conservative Free National Movement (FNM), has condemned the project, as well. It calls the hospital a "white elephant," says money should be spent to fix up existing structures (like the Princess Margaret Hospital), and also expresses fears of loss of sovereignty to China.
The Bahamas will actually hold elections on May 12, and the FNM has said that if it wins, it will stop the hospital project. Unfortunately, Davis and the PLP are pretty far ahead in the polls and, unless something crazy happens in the next couple of weeks, likely to win.
Regardless of all of that, if what the Bahamian government is saying is, indeed, true, the Biden administration ignored a country that is just a two- to three-hour boat ride from our shores, so much so that it ended up deeper in bed with China, practically allowing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) access to camp out on our coast. We already know the CCP uses these infrastructure projects to gain leverage in the Western Hemisphere. They also use them to gather intelligence and spy on us. What's next? A Chinese military base in the Bahamas?
Thankfully, Rubio and Donald Trump are working to combat China's influence in the Caribbean assuming it's not too late. Stay tuned for a follow-up on this later in the week.
In the meantime, check out these other articles from my "Tracking China in the Americas" series:
Recommended: Tracking China in the Americas: Adiós, Amigos
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.
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