With the Caricom’s 50th meeting well on its way in St. Kitts and Nevis and the much- anticipated speech by Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, one must say it was well-delivered and applauded amid the talks of tensions among CARICOM neighbours.
PM Persad-Bissessar opened with, “we must work for all the citizens of our countries”, Caricom must not be used to protect anyone and Party Politics hinders progress. We are not a zone of peace and cannot bind ourselves to the same Political Ideologies, Foreign Issues and Security Policies as that of the other Caricom countries as we face different challenges due to different factors geopolitical, economic, societal and otherwise.
Persad-Bissessar spoke about the unreliability of Caricom when two countries, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana, were threatened; but going forward we will work with Caricom as we respect sovereign member’s choice for National Security and Foreign Policy.
Sometimes the necessary choices are the hard ones not the popular ones. It was also said by Prime Minister Andrew Holness of Jamaica that “we each have our own pathway to walk given what’s happening in our own countries.” Therefore challenges and decisions will be different.
Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness
PM Persad-Bissessar spoke boldly about accepting help from President Donald Trump, US Secretary of State Mark Rubio and the US military in a time when her country was faced with Narco-Trafficking and Human and Arms Smuggling from Venezuela which has no doubt contributed to the 623 murders in 2024 of which 40% were gang related.
With the presence of the US Military in Trinidad and Tobago in 2025 there was a decrease in the murder rate by 42% according to PM Persad-Bissessar. She continued to say that her government will continue to corporate with the US in the best interest of our citizens as the level of crime is not the same as what is experienced by Caricom neighbours, no doubt due to our geopolitical location.
Anyone who understands National Security, Foreign Policy and Geopolitics will surely understand that a country like Trinidad and Tobago who cannot sustain itself let alone fight against global superpowers had to make the logical choice of accepting help from the United States not only to secure our borders, protect our citizens and fight a war default by location, would understand the pros outweighed the cons in this US-TT alliance.
One must also add due to live and vibrant factors that continue to contribute to destabilising and destructive forces in our region, we gained from US military help stating crime is now recognized as a Public Health Concern in this country.
On the issue of Illegal Migration one cannot say this country has not done its part, by in large Trinidad and Tobago has taken in the largest number of Venezuelans than any other Caricom country to date, placing a drain on the taxpayers of Trinidad and Tobago, with a population of 1.4 million people and roughly over 300,000 are migrants. She also stated full and free movement we continue to support and agree in principle at the moment.
Couva Childrens’ Hospital
PM Persad-Bissessar spoke about the situation in Cuba and will not support a Dictatorial Regime anywhere, as Trinidad and Tobago supports the principles of Equality before the Law, The Rule of Law, Majority Rule and Minority Rights, Equality before the Law, Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances, Free and Fair Democratic Elections in a Multiparty System, Accountability and Transparency, Capitalism, Democracy, Freedom of Expression and Association.
With all this in mind, we have to find a mechanism for the humanitarian efforts for the people of Cuba as we cannot advocate for Communism and Dictatorship while we live in Capitalism and Democracy.
To end her speech PM Persad-Bissessar spoke in the spirit of regional partnerships, encouraging Caricom citizens to take part in educational benefits at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and remembering education as a passport out of poverty. Also, the opening of the Couva Children’s Hospital and its services and to continue to put our national interest first.
This showmanship of diplomacy at its best by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar was well executed given the fortitude of this individual in the fight against crime in this country, the stance taken in the midst of negativity which brings to mind the saying that even if you have to stand alone for the right thing do it!
Melissa Pulchan
BSc Political Science, MBA
