Should Caribbean be worried about intervention with Trump’s policies?

PART I

Tariffs, annexation, independence and sovereignty have all become buzzwords around US president Donald Trump’s administration. The impacts of his foreign policies are being felt globally and regionally. What do these decisions mean for people of the region and how best could they be addressed?

Newsday took an in-depth look at some of these issues particularly in the context of most Caribbean countries being former colonies. This two-part series shares the voices and ideas of academics, a former minister and the chair of the Emancipation Support Committee of Trinidad and Tobago.

US President Donald Trump’s recent statements of annexing Greenland, reclaiming the Panama Canal and referencing Canada as the US’s 51st state raised questions of sovereignty and independence once again.

Regionally, some questioned what this could mean for former European colonies.

University of the West Indies (UWI) historian Dr Jerome Teelucksingh and economist and former minister of foreign affairs Winston Dookeran spoke to the issue and how the region and Trinidad and Tobago should best respond.

When Teelucksingh heard of Trump’s intentions for Greenland and the Panama Canal it reminded him of the 1823 Monroe Doctrine.

Former US president James Monroe articulated its four basic points: the US would not interfere in Europe’s internal affairs or wars; the US recognised and would not interfere with existing colonies and dependencies in the western hemisphere; the hemisphere was closed to future colonisation and any attempt by a European power to oppress or control any nation in the western hemisphere would be viewed as an act of aggression against the US.

In a recent phone interview, Teelucksingh said Trump's statements were a “backward step” in US foreign policy.

But this was not the only regressive step Teelucksingh noticed.

The tense political situation existing between Venezuela and the US also reminded him of another piece of 20th century US foreign policy: dollar diplomacy.

It was the brainchild of US president William Howard Taft and his secretary of state Philander C Knox, “to ensure the financial stability of a region while protecting and extending US commercial and financial interests there,” Britannica.com said.

Answers to how the region should address this starts with Caricom, Teelucksingh said.

“We need to ensure all Caribbean governments, in a collective way, deal with this and I think this is very relevant. It has to be dealt with this year and cannot be delayed to 2026 or 2027.

“We have to examine what would be the impact on taxes for us and the higher cost of goods, Caribbean security.”

In 2024, TT allocated $6.9 billion to national security but much of that was spent on internal defence and crime suppression as opposed to a focus on external threats.

TT’s crime problem made it “ripe” for invasion and sent a bad international message, Teelucksingh said.

He added that the US was helping TT with its coast guard and drug enforcement.

“We have to be very cautious that if Caribbean countries cannot handle their internal affairs properly, be it crime, poverty or unemployment, it makes them vulnerable for US intervention.”

It was important for Caribbean countries to ensure sovereignty was maintained, he added.

“We need first-world countries to respect our independence and republicanism.”

Caricom and the Caribbean Development Bank needed to work together to ensure regional defence budgets were increased and external threats neutralised or minimised, he said.

He added the region also collectively had to let the US know its boundaries.

Teelucksingh, however, sees these developments as a wake-up call for the region’s countries and an opportunity to be free of “first-world ownership.”

This presents a chance not only to protect existing independent countries but to assist others in gaining theirs.

He used Barbados’ recent transition to republicanism. The country became a republic on November 30, 2021.

“That is a very good sign other Caribbean countries need to follow. Give up your European link, is it so hard to do that?” he asked.

He also suggested revisiting the idea of a Caribbean currency to give the region greater global power.

“Have one Caribbean currency so that we, now, would be a major player in the world. It is difficult to have a small-island developing state with a budget but if we have a Caribbean currency we would be as strong as the yen, as the pound.

“That idea that was floated in the last century, it now has to be put back on the front burner. We have to sit down and find out, ‘How could the Caribbean have one currency where we could play a major role in the stock markets of the world, where we could now deal with our defence because our currency is strong.’”

While there was Caricom, countries were not on the “same page” or “singing from the same book” because they have different currencies, he said.

Teelucksingh added that neutrality was also a major tool in dealing with the shifting geopolitics.

“Sometimes, economists and politicians think we need to take a stance. Are we pro-Trump, are we anti-US, are we pro-Venezuela?

“Neutrality is a very important political position in this game of chess. If we are not neutral we could be targeted by a country that is against one of our allies.”

Now more than ever, Caribbean countries need to be careful in developing global alliances, Teelucksingh said.

Dookeran said the world was not only facing a period of uncertainty but also unpredictability given the new global political developments.

However, TT and the Caribbean should not panic, he added.

“Every time a statement is made particularly by US president Donald Trump, he keeps attacking and backtracking and forward tracking and backtracking.

“We are not too sure those things would ever see the light of day. We must be cautious against jumping to conclusions until there is something specific.”

He suggested a hands-on approach be taken to address threats to sovereignty.

“We need to have hands-on monitoring to focus on all the different ideas on the global agenda led largely by the US,” he said.

TT had to be prepared if anything came to pass, Dookeran said.

He said the Dragon gas deal and Venezuelan oil were key issues in TT/US relations. The deal was signed in 2018 and was expected to supply TT with natural gas.

“I think we need to do a very detailed, insiders-information into that. The government must get intelligence from all the sources on what are the prospects of Venezuelan oil being at risk because our future is linked to that.”

Back-room diplomacy was required to have this done.

Another major issue that needed to be addressed was immigration. A clear policy was needed from the TT government on returning residents.

“We need to quantify what is the situation and be prepared for any eventuality to handle it. Here you need some good intelligence on what is taking place in the US’s thinking.”

But the country did need not rush to a conclusion as there was internal opposition to Trump’s policies.

The US had a “resilient system” that might oppose many of the recent developments, Dookeran said.

Asked if countries had cause to be worried about their sovereignty, Dookeran said countries had to be concerned about Trump’s statements but not overly concerned about fighting it.

TT needed to stand up and not be afraid of losing its identity and sovereignty.

The country needed to be aware of available options in terms of external threats, defence and weigh available, alternative security options that were not reliant on the US.

Dookeran, however, remained optimistic that when Trump demits office the US would always be a very friendly country to the TT and the region.

“So we just have to navigate this period during his tenureship because he is after all the president of the US. I don’t think I should extrapolate from that that the US as a country and a people would be against us for all time.”

Read PART 2 here.