Just when I thought I had seen and heard it all Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar does the unthinkable. She uses the auspicious occasion of the 50th Regular Meeting of the CARICOM Heads of Government to scold the leaders of CARICOM countries as if they were truant schoolchildren and she, the erstwhile headmistress.
Firstly, she berated the Prime Minister of Barbados for what she deemed to be that leader’s role in “kidnapping” a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago and “extraditing” him to Trinidad. Given that this matter is of a sensitive nature, proper protocol would have dictated that this discussion should have been taken in caucus or facilitated through a bilateral meeting between the two countries.
Prime Minister Mottley’s contribution at the regional and international level is well-known and highly regarded. She needs no defender. However, PM Persad-Bissessar’s attempt to publicly shame her Bajan counterpart showed conduct unbecoming of a Prime Minister.
Even more strange was that while Ms. Persad-Bissessar was quick to deem the kidnapping of Brent Thomas as illegal, she failed to see the parallel between that incident and her involvement in facilitating the US attack on Venezuela on 3rd January 2026 and the subsequent kidnapping of President Nicholas Maduro and his wife.
The international community has rightly condemned the attack on Venezuela and the imprisonment of a sitting President as illegal and in contravention of UN Charter’s Article 2(4) which prohibits UN member states from using or threatening force against another country.
Yet Ms. Persad-Bissessar seems oblivious to the fact that her government’s role in supporting efforts to effect a regime change in another country is a violation of international law. A case of pot calling the kettle black.
Additionally, in her speech Ms. Persad-Bissessar failed to acknowledge the extra-judicial killing of 150 persons by US military attacks on small vessels since September 2025. The US has presented no evidence of drug trafficking or human trafficking.
Moreover, the Prime Minister offered no apology to the families even though her own citizens and those of Saint Lucia were numbered among the fatalities. To date all the fatalities have not been identified. Worse the families have received no answers or justice. Yet Ms. Persad-Bissessar continues to enthusiastically endorse US action and to falsely represent it as an effective crime-fighting strategy.
Her expressions of gratitude to President Trump and Secretary of State Rubio show that she neither respects international law, the rights of citizens or the principles of democracy.
The Prime Minister’s speech was also riddled with inaccuracies. It was also short on facts and full of vitriol. She attacked her CARICOM leaders for not being reliable partners in defending Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana against threats by Venezuela.
The records would show that it is the UNC-led government in Trinidad and Tobago that engaged in maneuverings to destabilise Venezuela and to facilitate US aggression towards Venezuela.
Until April 2025, Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago enjoyed a harmonious relationship which was evidenced by several cross-border joint venture projects not least being Venezuela’s granting of a 30-year license in December 2023 to develop the Dragon gas field.
It is the Prime Minister who soured the relationship with Venezuela after she formed the new government in April 2025. This subsequently led to Venezuela canceling all licenses granted to Trinidad for oil and gas development.
The claim that CARICOM leaders have not shown solidarity with Guyana in its dispute with Venezuela is also patently untrue. CARICOM leaders have consistently issued statements supporting Guyana’s claims to the Essequibo region.
However, CARICOM countries including Guyana subscribe to the rule of law and have acknowledged that the matter is before the International Court of Justice. CARICOM’s unstinting support is also demonstrated in the signing of the Argyle Declaration on December 14, 2023.
This initiative was led by the former Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Dr. Ralph Gonsalves and was aimed at de-escalating tensions between Guyana and Venezuela.
The Prime Minister’s speech is a vain attempt to re-write history and to sanitise her role in supporting the unprecedented military action which has occurred in the Caribbean since September 2025.
The claim that her government’s support of US military action in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific was necessary to address drugs and human trafficking is also untrue. President Trump has made it clear that the goal was always gaining control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
The 150 persons killed in the US strikes and those who lost their lives in the attack on Venezuelan soil on January 3 were just collateral damage. Against this background, the Prime Minister’s celebratory tone and expressions of gratitude to President Trump for the military action taken in the Caribbean, the Pacific and Venezuela, are obscene.
This speech has surpassed the infamous comment that “Trinidad and Tobago is not an ATM” made in July 2010 as being the most tone-deaf speech ever delivered by a Prime Minister in the history of Trinidad and Tobago. It was insensitive and undiplomatic and will not be easily forgotten or forgiven.
Instead of healing wounds, the speech excoriated CARICOM leaders for taking a principled stand against US unwarranted aggression on vulnerable countries. It also champions a “might is right approach” instead of embracing the cherished principles of national sovereignty, non-intervention, mutual respect and cooperation.
In summary the speech was a disservice to the people of Trinidad and Tobago. This speech will be remembered as another missed opportunity for Trinidad and Tobago to show leadership and solidarity with our Caribbean and Latin American neighbours.
The importance of maintaining good relations with our CARICOM neighbours must also be underscored as CARICOM is the second largest export market for Trinidad and Tobago. In 2024 Trinidad and Tobago earned US$1 billion from the CARICOM market.
There has also been significant economic and functional cooperation among CARICOM countries as well as Cuba and Venezuela. Yet when it mattered Trinidad and Tobago did not stand with its brothers and sisters in CARICOM and the wider Caribbean.
The attendance of Secretary Rubio to the 50th meeting of the CARICOM Heads of Government can only be seen as a deliberate attempt by the US to use its big stick to force compliance with US foreign policy with respect to engagement with Cuba, Venezuela, China, Russia and even Europe.
In the case of Cuba, the US has engineered a humanitarian crisis by blockading Cuba – a country of nearly 11 million people. This is unconscionable and should be denounced by the international community.
Given Ms. Persad-Bissessar’s unstinting support of the Trump administration it would be interesting to see how US influence shapes future relations among countries within Latin America and the Caribbean.
Cecila Melville