Chinese Company Now 100% in Control Of Kingston Freeport Management

We saw it coming, a Chinese firm takes full control over kingston Free Port Terminal management. I wasn't surprised to read the news in the Jamaican Observer

"This was made possible by the international French-led shipping and port management firm, CMA CGM selling its interest in KFTL (Kingston Freeport Terminal Ltd) to a subsidiary company, Terminal Link, which was up to that point a joint venture of CMA CGM (51 per cent) and China Merchants (49 per cent)."

The deal also saw the China Merchants taking full or partial control of 8 ports globally including:

50 per cent of Odessa Terminal Holdco Ltd (Ukraine), 49 per cent of CMA CGM-PSA Lion Terminal Pte Ltd (Singapore), 100 per cent of Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (Jamaica), 30 per cent of Rotterdam World Gateway (the Netherlands), 24 per cent of Qingdao Qianwan United Advance Container Terminal Co., Ltd (China), 47.25 per cent of First Logistics Development Company (Vietnam), 14.5 per cent of Laem Chabang International Terminal Co Ltd (Thailand) and 100 per cent of CMA CGM Terminals Iraq SAS.

While many knew this would happen to Kingston Free Port, many also feel it was for the best as China would do well by Jamaica by increasing the ports competitiveness in the region and they have done so by first off investing in dredging the harbor to accommodate ships carrying 14,000 twenty-foot containers up from 3,500.

While asking a few Jamaicans, one made an interesting point, "better China than another anglosaxon company". Another person I asked said, "Over 500 years of white interference in Jamaica we need a break. We need a new abuser."

On the flip side, the American Ambassador to Jamaica, Donald R. Tapia has warned Jamaica for making China have too much control and the consequences it could have with the US-Jamaica relation. The ambassador thinks that China is strategically targeting Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America as they are easily corruptible and China can strategically pursue its communist regime in the region.

Why do you think the Chinese are so intersted in Africa, Caribbean and Latin America?

Do you think the United states should be stepping up to "help" third world countries develop instead of complaining when China invests in these regions?

Do you think these so called third world countries should be more self sufficient and how?