Civil society organizations in Trinidad and Tobago are mobilizing for a demonstration outside the US Embassy in Port of Spain on January 4th, denouncing what they characterize as an illegal military intervention in Venezuela. The protest comes in response to US forces’ capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores during a large-scale operation on January 3rd.
Movement for Social Justice (MSJ) leader David Abdulah issued a forceful statement condemning the action as “a gross violation of national sovereignty” that contravenes international law and the UN Charter. The coalition labeled the operation “an act of imperialism” designed to assert US hegemony throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
The groups particularly criticized Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s administration for its alleged complicity in facilitating US military activities in the region. They pointed to several concerning developments: her government’s support for US military deployment in the Southern Caribbean initiated last August, establishment of a US radar system at Tobago’s ANR Robinson International Airport, and granting unlimited transit permissions to US military aircraft at Trinidad’s major airports.
While Persad-Bissessar asserted that Trinidad and Tobago is “not a participant in any of these ongoing military operations,” she reiterated her longstanding refusal to recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate leader. This position contrasts sharply with most CARICOM nations, which have collectively advocated for maintaining the Caribbean as a zone of peace and opposed US military action against alleged narco-trafficking operations.
The Prime Minister recently questioned CARICOM’s reliability as a security partner while affirming that the United States represents Trinidad and Tobago’s sole credible protector against external threats.