BASSETERRE, Saint Kitts – In a proactive move to safeguard public safety and strengthen national security frameworks, multiple law enforcement and security agencies in Saint Kitts and Nevis have launched a three-day specialized explosives disposal and training exercise, kicking off on September 23, 2026 at the Bakers Point Shooting Range.
The operation brings together personnel from across the federation’s key security bodies: the Infantry and Coast Guard divisions of the St. Kitts Nevis Defence Force (SKNDF), the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, and the St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Services. Organizers have cordoned off a dedicated exclusion zone around the training site for the duration of the exercise, running through September 25, and have issued a public warning urging unauthorized persons to avoid the area to prevent accidental harm. During the exercise, participating teams will carry out the controlled, safe detonation of expired munitions and obsolete ordnance that has been identified as a public safety risk.
The initiative is backed by two key international and regional partners: the Mines Advisory Group (MAG), a global organization specializing in explosive ordnance management, and the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS). Full funding for the project is provided by the United States Department of State.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the training on September 23, Attorney General Garth Wilkin, who serves as the federation’s Acting Minister of National Security, emphasized the critical importance of the operation for long-term public protection. Wilkin stressed that ammunition has a limited shelf life, and as a responsible governing body, the administration is obligated to take every necessary step to protect civilian life and public and private property across the islands.
“Every round of ammunition that sits in a store beyond its useful life is a liability,” Wilkin told attendees. “It is a liability to the soldiers who must guard it, to the communities that live near it, and, if it ever leaves that store by the wrong door, to every citizen and resident of the Federation. Today, we begin to remove that liability.”
The entire safe disposal operation is structured under a formal Framework Agreement for Weapons and Munitions Management, signed just one day before the exercise launched on September 22 between SKNDF and MAG Caribbean. All activities are being carried out in full compliance with the domestic laws of Saint Kitts and Nevis, as well as aligned with globally recognized standards including the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines, International Mine Action Standards, and the Modular Small Arms Control Implementation Compendium.
The full project will roll out in three distinct phases through to December 2026 for this initial phase of work. The first phase, which the ongoing training exercise forms a core part of, focuses on the destruction of the federation’s stockpiles of outdated, unsafe ammunition. The second phase will shift to targeted skills development, with MAG specialists providing hands-on training and mentorship to local personnel at Camp Springfield. The final phase will see the delivery of specialized equipment and materials required to conduct safe, independent munitions and ordnance disposal operations domestically going forward.
Crucially, the project is designed to build long-term local capacity rather than relying on external support to address ongoing security risks. “This is not an exercise in having others do our work for us,” Wilkin explained. “The purpose is to build our own national capabilities so that men and women of the defence force, and in time the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, are equipped to manage weapons and ammunition safely and accountably for the long term.”
Wilkin added that the framework agreement has been intentionally structured as a flexible platform to accommodate future needs. “It allows us to agree further statements of work as needs arise. And the next priority for this government is to bring our armoury and ammunition storage arrangements fully in line with international standards.”
Officials also publicly extended gratitude to CARICOM IMPACS for its sustained leadership in advancing coordinated regional security initiatives across the Caribbean, as well as to the U.S. State Department for its financial support that made the project possible.