Young on calls to resign: ‘I’m not moving’

NATIONAL Security Minister Stuart Young on Wednesday declared there is nothing arising out of the visit by Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez in March to warrant his resignation.

At the Ministry of Health’s covid19 briefing, Young smiled when asked by a reporter about continued calls for him to resign over that visit and TT's consequent alleged breach of the Rio Treaty.

"With the greatest of respect, my resignation does not arise out of this covid conversation," Young replied. He continued, "The answer is ‘no’ and, quite frankly, I have not seen the reason for resignation."

He said he had listened very carefully to calls for his resignation and "noted the quarters that it has come from."

Young reiterated that his response to a question in the Senate on May 13 about this issue was misquoted in the media. In a statement on May 19, and in his Hansard contribution on May 13, Young said, “We (TT and the US) continue to have open channels of communication. In fact, last week, the US Government’s head and top diplomat in TT, that is the ambassador – not any underling who may or may not be speaking to the media, the US ambassador, had a conversation with me, as a representative of the Cabinet level of the Government.” Young said he and US Ambassador Joseph Mondello had other conversations and there was no raising of the breach of any treaty.”

Young added, "I never said that the ambassador did not raise the visit of Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, nor did I say that the ambassador did not raise the Rio Treaty. What I said was the breach of treaty was not raised.”

In a statement on May 19, Mondello said he expressed concern about Rodriguez's visit to Young in a conversation they had on May 6. He said he spoke with Young about the “consistency” of Rodriguez's visit to Port of Spain with TT's obligations as a party to the Rio Treaty.

Mondello said Article 20 of the Treaty "makes it unambiguously clear that all measures imposed by the Organ of Consultation – like the travel restrictions on Ms Rodriguez – are binding on all treaty parties, whether or not they voted in favour of such measures."

Since clarifying his statement, Young observed two "very small" corrections were made in the Newsday and Express newspapers about him being misquoted. He added this is "where a lot of the whole misconstruing came from that I was quoted in saying something that was then relied on by our US allies."

Young added, "That is what we were told and that turned out to be wholly false." He said he adheres rigidly to his oath of office to serve "without fear or favour, malice or ill will and definitely to the best of my ability."

He observed despite his statement and his Hansard contribution being made public, "it was still scoffed over and that repeat of a misquotation of me took place."

In statement on May 22, the Foreign and Caricom Affairs Ministry said the Prime Minister, Young and Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dennis Moses held wide-ranging and cordial discussions with Mondello and other US Embassy officials on May 20.

The ministry said the talks underscored the continued strong diplomatic ties between TT and the US. On claims that TT-US ties are in jeopardy because of Rodriguez's visit, the ministry said the May 20 meeting showed "nothing is further from the truth." Speaking on a matter on the adjournment in the Senate on Tuesday, Moses explained that TT is not bound by the Rio Treaty.