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US plan to freeze foreign aid could make countries turn to China?

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Professor Basil Wilson, retired provost of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City
 
Retired Provost of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, Professor Basil Wilson, says the plan by US President Donald Trump's administration to freeze foreign aid could result in countries turning to China for financial support.
 
Last week, Mr. Trump ordered a 90-day pause to all foreign aid, pending a review of efficiencies and consistency with his foreign policy.
 
The move has negatively affected a range of humanitarian and development programmes backed by agencies such as USAID.
 
Speaking Thursday on the Morning Agenda on Power 106FM, Mr. Wilson, who is Jamaican, said US foreign aid has been used to advance America's diplomacy and is commonly referred to as 'soft power'.
 
He said if the US foreign aid becomes non-existent, it provides China with the opportunity to become more influential in countries that need assistance.
 
Mr. Wilson pointed out that the Chinese government has played a major role in developing the infrastructure of several African countries.
 
"The Trump administration [has] this whole notion of 'America first', but you cannot be a world power, you cannot exercise hegemony on the world stage without in fact becoming involved in exercising and showing the effectiveness of soft diplomacy, and so it is very narrow-minded and shows a limited understanding of the world in which we live when you do not understand the important role that foreign aid plays in exercising being a world power," he suggested. 
 
Professor Wilson said the US withdrawal from the World Health Organization and Paris climate agreement as well as announced tariffs on some countries and mass deportation could also diminish America's support in the global community. 
 
"Once you create that kind of vacuum, other countries will in fact seize that vacuum and become much more important in being players in the world community. I mean, for example, the European Union has played an important role in developing countries. If you look at even Jamaica's budget, the European Union has always made a contribution. When we look at squatter communities and communities that are certainly in need of aid, they have been willing to provide a certain amount of support. America has really lacked that kind of high-mindedness," reasoned the professor.    


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