Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with his (a) US counterpart and (b) counterparts in the Caribbean Community on countering Chinese strategic influence in the region.

This Government will take a consistent, long term and strategic approach to managing the UK’s relations with China, rooted in UK and global interests. We will co-operate where we can, compete where we need to, and challenge where we must.

The UK recognises that deepening our cooperation with partners is needed to strengthen collective security and push back against behaviour that undermines international law or seeks to coerce or create dependencies. The Ministry of Defence has had a number of productive conversations with the US and partners in the Caribbean Community.