Belize Joins Hemispheric Security Initiative to Combat Drug Cartels

Belize has joined a hemispheric security initiative aimed at strengthening regional cooperation to combat the growing threat posed by drug cartels and organized criminal networks.  The development follows the Conference of the Americas Against Cartels, held last Wednesday and Thursday in Doral, Florida, USA, where participating countries adopted a joint security declaration committing to greater collaboration in the fight against narcotrafficking, narco-terrorism, and other forms of transnational crime.  Representing Belize at the conference was Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of Defence and Border Security, who signed the declaration on behalf of the country.  The agreement outlines a framework for stronger cooperation among countries in the hemisphere, including expanded intelligence sharing, improved border security, protection of critical infrastructure, and coordinated operations to disrupt cartel activity.  Minister Marin says Belize stands to benefit from the initiative through enhanced regional support and collaboration aimed at strengthening the country’s capacity to prevent the infiltration of cartels and other criminal networks.

Hon. Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of National Defence: “As Minister of Defence of Belize I attended the Americas Counter Cartel Conference with the Minister of Defense and the Secretary of War Pete Hegseth in Florida where we all signed a joint security declaration. The purpose of this is for us to expand our operation multilaterally and bilaterally to enhance the security in the western hemisphere. I don’t know if you all saw the speech I gave but part of it was that Belize alone cannot fight this ongoing threat that we have and we need to work together so we are happy to get support wherever we can and cooperate wherever we can to keep Belize safe.”

Reporter: And then in terms of the kind of support that Belize can expect after signing this agreement in terms of the security against cartels., what can we expect ? 

Hon. Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of National Defence: “I do expect us to be able to get more support. The details I don’t care to get into for operational reasons but I do sense serious commitment by the government of the US as well as of our partners. So I do expect us to have more of a coordinated effort in dealing with these trans national criminal issues.”

Reporter: What was the atmosphere like being in the room with all these leaders and discussing this security issue that seems to affect all of these countries that are listed here in the agreement ? Was it like an atmosphere of hope that this issue can finally have some sort of direct solution or address ?
Hon. Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of National Defence:“I like you are using the word hope because I found it very interesting hearing my colleagues in the Caribbean and central and south America of the issues they are facing and a lot of it similar to ours and some of them have it on a more prevalent level. So there is the hope that coming together, working together multilaterally and bilaterally we are able to be more effective in reducing this threat to our nations collectively. I mean alone as I mentioned clearly we can’t do it, no one can do it alone. It has to be a team effort so there is hope together we can help keep this major threat at by in particular for our country Belize.”

Belize joins several regional partners in endorsing the declaration, including Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica.  During the conference, regional leaders warned that transnational criminal networks continue to threaten security and stability across the hemisphere, undermining the rule of law and weakening state institutions.  The agreement also comes just days after John Briceño emphasized the need for Belize to address the potential threat of cartel influence before it becomes deeply entrenched in the country.  Regional officials say the declaration marks an important step toward building stronger partnerships to safeguard security and stability across the Americas