PM meets US military, CIA

THE Prime Minister held high-level security meetings with US military officials at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, and with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on Monday.

A statement from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) on Tuesday said Dr Rowley's engagements at the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US Department of Defense, included meetings with US Deputy Under Secretary of Defense Melissa Dalton, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere Daniel Erikson and other senior US military officers.

The discussions focused on a number of areas, including defence co-operation, border security, partnership with the Delaware National Guard, cyber defense and cyber security as well as regional maritime interdiction.

After these meetings, Rowley and his delegation travelled to the CIA's headquarters in Langley, Virginia for a meeting with its director William Burns.

Minister in the OPM Stuart Young, Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne and Defence Force Chief of Staff Air Vice-Marshal Darryl Daniel accompanied Rowley to these meetings.

Earlier on Monday, the delegation met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US trade representative Ambassador Katherine Tai in Washington, DC.

The discussions with Blinken included a focus on violent crime and firearms trafficking in the Caribbean.

Rowley left for Washington, DC, on Sunday.

Finance Minister Colm Imbert will act as prime minister until Rowley returns home.