Belize Targeted With Unsubstantiated Allegations on US Conservative Radio Show

Belize was featured this week on The Steve Gruber Show, a U.S.-based conservative talk radio programme with a national audience across multiple states and a growing digital listenership through podcast platforms and online streaming.  The show’s guest was Jose Mallea, who described himself as a former White House staffer. During the interview, Mallea raised concerns about the long-running Stake Bank dispute in Belize, alleging that the Government of Belize colluded with a financial institution to take control of the project from a private sector developer.  Mallea further referenced issues relating to alleged narco-trafficking and cartel activities, making claims of connections to operations within the Corozal Free Zone. No evidence was presented during the segment to substantiate those claims, and Belizean authorities have not publicly responded to the assertions made on the programme.

RADIO HOST: “And suddenly of the seven countries in Central America one is an english-speaking country it’s Belize, small country, and now it’s turning up on Washington’s radar as a red flag which is weird because all of these countries in the western hemisphere being El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica,  Venezuela,  Argentina all turning away from socialism and toward a more populist right of center government what’s up with Belize ?”

RADIO SHOW GUEST: “Yeah, you know, it’s interesting because I think we forget that there are there’s so many countries in the hemisphere. Some are very small some fall under the radar and unfortunately sometimes the ones under the radar are where you see a lot of corruption, institutional corruption that exists at a granular level so we’ve got issues down there related to government expropriation of assets and those are things that the US government takes really seriously especially when it involves assets that could be national security threats. There’s one particular case over a port. There’s a cruise ship terminal called State Bank Island that the government has colluded with the bank to seize from a private owner. The reason that that’s worrisome is multiple things. One, it is a major terminal for ships. Now, intended for ports, but if it falls in the wrong hands, let’s assume it falls into the hands of an adversary of the United States. Now you have a place where ships can dock in the Western Caribbean. And then you’ve got the concerns in the region over narco behavior and other type of cartel work that happens. And there’s already been reported incidents in their free trade zone in Corozal where they have actually been caught moving illegal cigarettes and other contraband through there. So while small and gorgeous, by the way it’s a beautiful place, that sometimes can lull us into a sense of danger.”
RADIO HOST:“Yeah, this fight over nationalizing control of telecommunications also on the list here. The government there seems to want to be an authoritarian government. When the rest of the Western Hemisphere is swiftly moving away from such things, Cuba is on the verge of collapse. They have no oil, no electricity, no food, no tourism, no hope at the moment. And you see all of these countries that are moving away from the socialist model because it’s an abject failure every single time here’s Belize seemingly going the wrong way.”

The Stake Bank matter has been the subject of legal and political debate in Belize for several years, involving disagreements over development rights, financing arrangements, and regulatory oversight. Government officials have previously maintained that their actions were taken within the bounds of the law and in the national interest.  The Steve Gruber Show is known in U.S. political circles for its commentary on conservative policy issues and regularly features former government officials, political strategists, and media personalities. The programme reaches listeners through terrestrial radio affiliates and online platforms, expanding its audience beyond traditional broadcast markets.  This news piece takes us back to December where Belize had come under international scrutiny in high-level discussions held in Washington, D.C.  Among the officials identified were U.S. Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Thomas G. DiNanno and Chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee Brian Mast. International attorney David Goldberg also participated in the discussions.  According to the disclosure, the talks centered on the rule of law, anti-corruption frameworks, organized crime, financial compliance, illicit finance and port governance, matters considered directly relevant to Belize.  Details of the meeting surfaced in a LinkedIn post by London-based barrister Rumen Cholakov, who stated that senior U.S. officials met separately with international legal specialists to discuss governance and security-related issues affecting Belize and the wider region.