I hope the Caribbean people will remember if it is China or the US who comes to their aid during earthquakes and hurricanes.
They won’t.
They will remember who pays appropriate bribes.
Providing relief during earthquakes and hurricanes is important, but it is not as important as facilitating job creation.
A nation can go through a decade without a single earthquake or serious hurricane damage, but unemployment is a more serious and more constant problem.
If you noticed, most (if not all of these nations) have unemployment problems.
The US won the “soft power” stakes during the Cold War largely because it could provide more economic opportunities than the Soviet bloc. If the US or its allies are no longer seen as the premier catalyst for economic growth in many parts of the World, then US leadership is badly compromised.
Secondly, we are talking about the Caribbean here, America’s backyard. If the US can’t be competitive here, at least team up with India and inject some dynamism in your trade relations. There is no point chasing bad guys half a World away if you neglect your corner of the Globe.
Thirdly, if you were paying attention to the news, you would have noticed that China launched a 10,000 tonne hospital ship in 2008. They are thinking ahead about projecting soft power during earthquakes and hurricanes.
Just to elaborate on my earlier point - from "Strategy Page"
China has built its first hospital ship. It has three older ones that are converted transports, as well as a medical training ship. But the new vessel, a Type 920 Hospital Ship, is 530 feet long, displaces 23,000 tons, and was designed and built as a hospital ship. It has 600 beds, plus operating rooms, laboratories, pharmacy and crew quarters. China did not give out any statistics, but based on Western hospital ships, the Type 920 probably has a ship crew of about 200 and a medical crew of about 600. China has also built emergency medical facilities that fit into a standard cargo container. Hook up water and electricity, and you can care for all but the most severely injured casualties.
The Type 920 class was designed with disaster relief in mind. This ship can get up most Chinese rivers, and thus can reach many areas where natural disasters cause massive amounts of injuries. China may also be thinking of copying the U.S. Navy, which regularly uses its two hospital ships for providing medical care to areas where there isn't much to begin with, and to areas hit by natural disasters.