PM welcomes US troops to Trinidad and Tobago

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar - Photo by Angelo Marcelle

THE prime minister has welcomed with open arms, the US Marine Corps' 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) which arrives today, November 16, for a week-long joint training exercise with the Defence Force (TTDF).

In a post on her official account on the X platform on Sunday, Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the collaboration reflects the "deep and enduring" security partnership between TT and the United States and credited the ongoing controversial US military action with already benefiting this country.

"The United States’ presence in the region has already contributed to a significant reduction in the trafficking of guns, drugs, and humans into our country. As a small nation facing transnational criminal networks, TT benefits immensely from this partnership with the world’s leading superpower.

"For too long, our citizens, from the elderly to our youth, and even innocent babies, have been slaughtered mercilessly by brazen criminals who profit from their connections to cartels and narco-terrorists.

"Gang violence has erupted into open lawlessness on our streets, with high-powered weapons unleashing daylight terror and claiming the lives of law-abiding citizens," the prime minister wrote in the X post.

Persad-Bissessar and her administration continue to give their resounding support for the US military action. In an apparent statement to those who disagree with this, the prime minister urged citizens to remember the innocent lives lost to gun violence in TT.

"Remember their names. Remember their faces. Their memories must fuel our national resolve. To win the fight against organised crime, we must strengthen and modernise our crime-fighting capability. These joint exercises with the United States are a critical step in enhancing the TTDF’s readiness, intelligence capability, and operational strength."

Persad-Bissessar also thanked the US for its intensified co-operation and for continuing to support TT's national security strategy. She thanked US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Dr Neidhart de Ortiz, and all officials who made the exercise possible and the US Marine Corps for their outreach initiatives at schools.

"Our partnership with the US has already achieved meaningful success and together we will continue to press forward until we win the war on crime which has plagued TT and threatens stability across our region."

She added: "May these exercises further fortify our security and usher in a safer, stronger Trinidad and Tobago. We promised to make TT safe and we intend to deliver."

The 22nd MEU arrives on November 16 and is expected to participate in the training exercises until November 21. The unit returned just over two weeks after first arriving with the Arleigh Burke guided missile destroyer USS Gravely on October 26 and left on October 30.

This visit did not go over well with Venezuela, which accused TT of working with the US to destabilise peace in the region. Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro subsequently suspended energy deals with TT and labelled Persad-Bissessar persona non grata, as his supporters staged protests in Caracas against her.

According to reports, Maduro has reiterated his warnings to Persad-Bissessar and called for more demonstrations amid news of the 22nd MEU's return to TT.

The US has been amassing a historic amount of assets in the region since August to combat what Washington says is narco-trafficking. However, it has also accused Maduro of being complicit in the illegal trade and called his leadership illegitimate. This has led the South American leader to believe the US is attempting to overthrow him.

Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs Sean Sobers, last Friday, denied any notion that the US military's presence in TT was to launch an attack on Venezuela.

The 22nd MEU is among the forces gathering in the Caribbean.

Since September, the US military has killed some 83 people suspected of drug smuggling in about 21 airstrikes in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific. In the most recent attack, three men were killed in the Eastern Pacific Sea on Saturday, as confirmed by the US Southern Command.