US Warship Bound for Trinidad for Military Exercises
By NEWSDAY REPORTER
A US warship is due to arrive in Trinidad for a five-day visit during which joint training exercises would be done with the TT Defence Force, the Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs announced on October 23.
The USS Gravely will dock in Port of Spain from October 26-30 with the 22nd US Marine Expeditionary Unit onboard.
“The US military services’ presence in Trinidad and Tobago highlights the US commitment to regional security and cooperative efforts in the Caribbean. The visit strengthens US-Trinidad and Tobago military cooperation through expert exchanges focused on core infantry tactics, maintenance procedures and advanced medical capabilities, leveraging the TTDF’s facilities to enhance tactical proficiency and enhance mutual trust. These efforts strengthen interoperability, reinforce long-term defence cooperation and improve operational readiness among partner forces,” the ministry said in a statement.
The warship arrives a week after the US Embassy, in an advisory on October 18, warned American citizens to avoid visiting US government facilities in this country “due to a heightened state of alert” over the recent Divali holiday weekend. Operations at the US embassy resumed on October 21 for visa appointments and US citizen services which it announced in on Facebook on October 20.
TT is under a state of emergency called in July in response to threats against senior government officials and which is expected to end as at October 28.
Tensions have been high in the Caribbean since a wave of US military strikes at sea began in September against alleged narco-traffickers from Venezuela, killing 37 people, among which two TT nationals are believed to be among the dead.
On October 23, US President Donald Trump insisted he could continue to launch strikes against alleged drug traffickers abroad without the Congress voting on an official declaration of war.
“I’m not going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war,” Trump told White House reporters. “I think we’re just doing to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. Okay? We’re going to kill them, you know, they’re going to be like, dead.”
Trump suggested the US government may consider operations on land against narco-traffickers within countries like Venezuela, and continue strikes on alleged drug boats in international waters. He said he would consider approaching Congress for a declaration of war on land strikes.
Earlier on October 23, the Prime Minister called on citizens to “be calm” in the face of increasing concerns about the possiblity of war in the region, particularly on reports that 5,000 Russian-made missiles were deployed in Venezuela’s anti-aircraft defence systems, which she described as fear-mongering.
“If and when we know more, we will let you know. We will keep you informed of what is happening. I have no information of war. I have no information about missiles landing in Venezuela,” she told reporters at the National Job Recruitment Drive in Couva.
“Again, we are speculating. Some people are just determined to fear-monger and hysteria. Please be calm. My name is Kamla. Be calm.”
Persad-Bissessar has been steadfast in her endorsement of the US military attacks which she has said are aimed at drug cartels whose activities destroy lives and families not only in TT but across the Caribbean. She has warned that any TT national caught in the crossfire at sea would be doing so at their own risk.
The US military build-up in the Caribbean has been seen by international relations experts as a strategy to force Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro out of government.
Persad-Bissessar, also on October 23, said she was not deterred by Venezuelan vice president Delcy Rodriguez’s criticism on October 22 that she was leading the people of TT “off a cliff” by trusting the US over its approval of a six-month OFAC licence approving discussions with Venezuela for cross-border exploration of the Dragon gas field, which is seen as critical for the future of TT’s gas-based economy.
“We are going uphill,” Persad-Bissessar said adding she has not had an official communication with Delcy or the Venezuelan government and will not engage any a “tit-for-tat.”
Persad-Bissessar’s support for the US has strained TT’s relationship with Caricom neighbours as it was the only country that did not endorse a recent call by member states for the US to halt its military presence in the Caribbean which they declare must remain a zone of peace.
The Persad-Bissessar administration has been hailed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for being part of an “alliance” of several Caribbean and Latin American countries.
On October 23, TT was the only English-speaking Caribbean country named in an October 21 US joint-statement that included six Latin American countries on the Bolivia election won by centrist leader Rodrigo Paz Periera.
The other countries are Argentina, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama and Paraguay.
Associated Press has reported that Periera, Bolivia’s first conservative president-elect in 20 years, in what it described as “another sign of the dramatic regional shift”, held a video call with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize this month. After years of Bolivia aligning itself with Maduro, Paz told Machado that Bolivia was “here to join in the fight for Venezuela and for Latin American democracies.”
Original source: https://newsday.co.tt/2025/10/24/us-warship-bound-for-trinidad-for-military-exercises/