US Venezuelan anti-drug cartel operation: We will do everything to ensure safety of Guyana & its people – Pres Ali

…says Caribbean has nothing to fear
In an effort to ensure the protection of the country and its citizens, President Dr Irfaan Ali has reaffirmed Guyana’s commitment to working with the regional and international partners including the United States (US) which has been conducting military operations off the Venezuelan shore, to combat transnational crime and the illicit drug trade. “Our priority is the protection of Guyana, the citizens of Guyana and the territory of Guyana. And we will do everything necessary to ensure that our country is safe and our people remain safe. We will do everything necessary to contribute to the region remaining a zone of peace and we will do everything in support of combating transnational crime and illicit drugs,” the Guyanese Head of State told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Friday where he was asked about the US military operation off the coast of Venezuela.

Washington has about 10,000 troops in the Caribbean, either on ships near the Venezuelan coast or in the US territory of Puerto Rico, as part of efforts to combat transnational crime and the illicit drug trade coming out of Caracas. The military assets in the region includes eight Navy ships, F-35 fighter jets and MQ-9 Reaper drones. The US has conducted at least six strikes on suspected drug-carrying vessels in the Caribbean, killing some 27 people.
Asked what support is being offered to the US in this operation, President Ali noted that Guyana will always work with its allies to ensure safety within the region.
“We have a responsibility to the citizens of this region and the people globally to support and to work with our allies as we have been doing for decades. Be it Brazil, Colombia, the US, Suriname – the entire region, we have been collaborating for decades. We’ve been supporting each other for decades in the fight against drugs and illicit activities but my priority as Commander-in-Chief is to ensure the safety of this country, the people of this country and our territorial integrity,” he posited.
According to President Ali, “Guyana has been working with our allies. We have a joint training programme. We have joint activities that are all publicly known. So, whatever we pursue and whatever partnership in the form of our partnership, once it does not compromise the security of the operation or personnel, of course the public will be aware.” Moreover, the Guyanese leader declared that contrary to reports, countries within the Caribbean have nothing to fear with the US operation near Venezuela. “If anyone says the Caribbean should be afraid, they should be calling for questioning,” President Ali contended, adding that “It means that person has information that will suggest that there is some harm that will come to the Caribbean from some force.”
The Trump Administration has stated that designated narco-terrorist organisations like Venezuela’s Cartel de los Soles are using the region’s air and sea corridors to funnel drugs into the US, posing a direct threat to American lives and security.
To date, the US has destroyed several vessels in the Caribbean Sea which it said was transporting cocaine and other dangerous drugs to the country.
Only on Friday, international news agencies reported another US military attack on a ship allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela. US President Donald Trump confirmed the attack on Friday, telling reporters that the vessel was a “drug-carrying submarine”.