Caption: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar. AZP News/Prior Beharry

Summary

• PM Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the US is paying about US$3 million a month to keep a military radar stationed at Crown Point, Tobago.
• She said the money is not paid to Trinidad and Tobago, describing it as US operating costs (salaries, accommodation, upkeep).
• Persad-Bissessar defended the US presence, citing the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) signed by a previous government and stressing US forces cannot arrest or detain citizens.
• She said US personnel in Tobago expected to be gone by March.
• The PM linked the US presence and the State of Emergency to a drop in murders and disruption of the drug supply, and said she will convene the National Security Council amid a recent uptick.

By Alicia Chamely

THE United States armed forces are paying US$3 million a month  to have its military radar stationed at Crown Point, Tobago.

This was revealed by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar on Friday as she addressed questions about the presence of US forces in Trinidad and Tobago before heading into the Red House, Port of Spain.

But she said the money is not being paid to Trinidad and Tobago, explaining that it relates to “operating costs.”

Persad-Bissessar said she could not understand why such a “big noise” was being made about the US military’s presence in T&T, noting that the previous government signed the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which provides the legal framework for US forces to operate within the country, especially during times of conflict and natural disasters.

She said that this did not mean T&T was at the mercy of the US, and that US forces had no jurisdiction to detain or arrest any Trinbagonian citizen.

Persad-Bissessar said, “We are not at the mercy of anyone except the good Lord.”

Addressing the military’s presence and the radar in Tobago, she said, “We are not at their (the US’s) mercy. We can say no, we can say yes, but we operated within the law. I don’t know why everyone is making such a big noise, because a few people were here from the US military in Tobago?”

“You know, they are paying US$3 million a month for that radar, not us. They are paying, right. Therefore, they kept some of their military personnel there to ensure that the radar will be safe, be able to continue working, would not be sabotaged, or any such matters,” she said.

Asked subsequently to clarify whether T&T was being paid for the radar, the prime minister said, “I am told T&T is not paid.”

She added, “I am told it is operating costs in the accounting sense. It includes salaries, accommodation, upkeep.”

Persad-Bissessar said she could not say how many US military personnel were in Tobago at this time, but she was informed they were in the process of leaving and would be gone by “sometime in March.”

Saying she had “no regrets” about calling on US support, Persad-Bissessar pointed to the drop in crime during their time here and again questioned why there was such an uproar about having them in the country.

Persad-Bissessar said, “In fact, as I’ve said, all murders came down by 42%, which is 257 less than last year. Why can’t we be happy with that? I know a lot of people were scared—bombs would drop and war! No war, nothing came to hit us from Venezuela.”

Asked whether she believed the drop in murders was due to the State of Emergency versus the US military’s presence, she said it was a combination of both. She added that because the US was in T&T and the southern Caribbean waters, there was a considerable disruption in the drug supply chain, which she described as a contributing factor to gang-related crime.

Persad-Bissessar said, “Did you realise that the drug supply dried up as well? The TTPS told us the supply of all those hard drugs had dried up, and the price of whatever little was still coming in—the prices are going right up.”

She further said the US military in T&T shared intelligence with the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, which led to a large drug bust.

With the SoE having come to an end and an uptick in murders being reported, Persad-Bissessar said, “I have serious concerns. I intend to convene another meeting of the National Security Council (NSC). We’ll discuss that matter and see what other strategies we can use. It is regrettable that the President’s senators and the Opposition senators failed to support the Zones of Special Operations Bill.”

“But there are other things we can do, and when the NSC meets, we will be having that discussion,” she added.