Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kerrie Symmonds says the presence of United States troops and naval assets in Caribbean waters must be carefully managed to avoid unintended consequences for ordinary citizens.
That is even as Barbados and its regional partners are seeking deeper cooperation with the US to stem the illegal flow of weapons into the region, he added.
In an interview recently, he revealed that Caribbean foreign ministers have written to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio requesting formal talks on Washington’s military posture in the hemisphere.
The initiative, he explained, came through the Conference of Foreign Ministers of the Caribbean Community, currently chaired by St Kitts and Nevis’ former prime minister Dr Denzil Douglas. The letter was dispatched after discussions at the African Union-CARICOM summit in Ethiopia earlier this year.
“We have not as yet received a response from Secretary Rubio,” Symmonds said, “but what we would want to be able to have with him is discussions about the need to bring down the temperature.
“There is serious concern across the Eastern Caribbean – in fact, across the Caribbean as a whole – about the high level of illegal weapons entering this region. If the United States’ presence is entirely about that, then that is a matter which we would not resist.
“That is a matter we would welcome and wish to participate in, in a meaningful way. Anything beyond that becomes a slightly different issue.”
The senior minister’s comments came amid rising anxiety across the region after President Donald Trump announced on September 2 that the US military killed 11 people in a strike on a vessel from Venezuela allegedly carrying illegal narcotics, in the first known operation since his administration’s recent deployment of warships to the southern Caribbean.
He said the military had identified the crew as members of Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which the US designated a terrorist group in February. He repeated allegations that Tren de Aragua was being controlled by Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, accusations that Caracas denied.
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar has thrown her full support behind the US sending troops to waters near Venezuela, as well as its strike on the vessel.
However, Symmonds warned that such actions, if not handled with transparency and due process, could undermine the very rule of law that both the US and Caribbean nations uphold.
“We really do not know all the facts surrounding the destruction of the ship in question or who was on board. It ought not to be a set of circumstances where these things take place without fullest transparency,” he said.
“People should be arrested, charged, tried and guilt established in law. That is the way in which the United States functions. That is the way in which our jurisdictions function and there should be no departure from that.”
Symmonds pointed out that while Barbados acknowledges the need for firm action against arms trafficking, the region cannot allow operations to take place in ways that compromise civilian safety. He also cited the safeguarding of fishing communities whose livelihoods depend on access to international waters.
“The slightest misstep can result in severe consequences to innocent people,” he said. “We need to know that there is certainty when these types of things are being done, that there is not an arbitrariness that can impact the life or safety of innocent people. That is why the fullest level of caution, transparency and adherence to the rules of law ought to be applied.”
Questions have also been raised about whether the Regional Security System (RSS), headquartered in Barbados, was notified before the US moved personnel and assets into the area.
“I am not in a position to confirm or deny whether or not the regional security services was given prior notification.”
The RSS, which brings together security forces from seven Eastern Caribbean states, has long been regarded as a vital regional mechanism for coordination on issues such as drug interdiction and disaster response.
The growing US presence has also reignited speculation about whether Washington’s actions are tied to its long-standing tensions with Venezuela.
“Our relationship with Venezuela [has not] in any way changed. The issue for us is not about Venezuela. The issue for us is about cooperation on the stated intentions of the American administration with regard to their presence in the region. I have every reason to believe that as partners with us in this region, the Americans will only act in good faith,” he said.
He said the Government’s priority is to strike a careful balance between security imperatives and diplomatic engagement.
“It ought not to be an us versus them type of approach. I think it is important that we thread this needle carefully, because the slightest misstep can result in severe consequences.”
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