The belt and road initiative looks East - Political implications of China's forays in the Caribbean and the South Pacific

China has not officially integrated the Caribbean into the Belt and Road Initiative (except for Trinidad and Tobago) but China is the ‘only game in town’ in the Caribbean these days. Although China does not follow an official strategy in the South Pacific, its extended presence in the South Pacific can be seen as an attempt to prepare the ground for making the region the next leg of the BRI.