Browne says US ties port grant to deportee deal as Washington raises Chinese spyware fears

ST JOHN'S, Antigua. Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne says the United States has agreed to pay to replace Chinese technology at the St John's deep water port, but will release the money only once Antigua signs a deal to accept third-country deportees.

Washington says the systems could be used by China to monitor American military and other activity in the region, a charge Antiguan cabinet officials vehemently deny.

In 2018, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) began redeveloping the port with a Chinese concessional loan, building warehouses, dredging the harbour and installing modern bulk container systems. The Browne administration hoped to make the country a shipping hub in the Eastern Caribbean.

Grant with strings

Speaking on his weekend radio programme, Mr Browne said the US had demanded the Chinese technology be removed. He said the cabinet had no problem with that once the US paid for replacement systems.

"They have approved a grant. They're now waiting for us to complete the TCN agreement, and they'll make that grant available," he said.

Talks on the third-country national (TCN) deal have been held up by differences over numbers. Antigua says it will take no more than 30 a year, while the US wants more than four times that.

Mr Browne denied that spyware was part of the port systems. "There was no conspiracy to provide any opportunity for any spyware to be installed in our port," he said. "Our relationship with China is not a threat to the United States."

He described the US as a "big brother" and China as a "big sister", suggesting there should be no tension between them with Antigua in the middle.

Visa pressure

Antigua has faced sustained US pressure over the past year to accept non-national deportees. The measures include severe restrictions on tourist visas for Antiguans, with applicants required to pay up to $20,000 as a refundable visa bond.