BASSETERRE, St Kitts – In a striking address at the 50th Caribbean Community (Caricom) summit, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar vigorously defended her nation’s security partnership with the United States while delivering pointed criticism toward regional counterparts regarding their stance on Venezuela. The leader employed the local expression ‘who vex loss’ to emphasize her unwavering position that national security priorities outweigh diplomatic discomfort.
Persad-Bissessar presented compelling evidence that collaboration with US military assets had produced tangible results, citing a 42% reduction in homicides directly attributed to disrupted narcotics trafficking networks. ‘We gained from the military help, and I will welcome them again,’ she declared, noting that 257 lives had been saved through this security partnership.
The Prime Minister expressed profound disappointment with Caricom’s response to Venezuelan aggression toward member states. She revealed that Trinidad and Tobago had faced ongoing threats from the Maduro regime while receiving insufficient regional support. ‘How can it be when that regime was threatening violence to two Caricom member states, there was no voice from Caricom?’ she questioned, challenging the concept of the Caribbean as a zone of peace.
Persad-Bissessar endorsed Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness’s perspective that Caricom should function as an alliance of independent nations pursuing individualized paths toward shared prosperity. She reaffirmed Trinidad and Tobago’s commitment to regional cooperation while maintaining the right to implement independent security policies tailored to national circumstances.
The leader concluded by emphasizing pragmatic governance over ideological consistency, stating that ultimate accountability remains to citizens seeking improved quality of life rather than to abstract regional principles.