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The CARICOM nations have demonstrated success in establishing a
joint CARICOM battalion to participate in the UN Mission in
Haiti. The CARICOM Battalion
exists for contingencies and disaster relief. Noting the
especially severe resource limitations of small states, the
CARICOM countries call on the larger states of the hemisphere
for training and other assistance to help stop illegal arms
and narcotics trafficking. |
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The seven-nation Regional Security System in the
Eastern Caribbean is an example of the benefits of cooperative
disaster relief and counterdrug activities. Separate defense forces exist
only in Antigua and Barbuda and in Barbados. The other
countries' coast guards are the responsibility of police forces.
In all cases, the security forces support police counterdrug
efforts. The RSS countries already cooperate on maritime
interdiction and have a provision for mutual shipriding,
makeing it easier for forces from one country to conduct
independently counterdrug missions in the territorial waters
of the others. Under the treaty the RSS is required to prepare contingency plans for and assist member-countries in national emergencies. In operational terms, this mandate includes drug interdiction, search and rescue, customs and immigration control, protection of off-shore installations, and assistance in natural and man-made disasters and threats to national security. |
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The structure of the RSS involves a Council of Ministers, which
comprises national security ministers, as the central
policy-making body. Operational command falls under a
Regional Security Coordinator (RSC) who heads a Central
Liaison Office (CLO), which is located in Barbados. Barbados
also provides the RSC, who is substantively Chief of Staff of
the Barbados Defense Force. The CLO plans and coordinates
in conjunction with a Joint Coordinating Committee comprising
army commanders and police commissioners. As is also evident
from it, not all RSS member-countries have armies.
This represents around 2,000 personnel, of which 1,500 comprise
the Barbados and Antiguan defence forces. A key
component of the police forces of the countries without
armies is the Special Service Unit (SSU), an elite
paramilitary police with the equivalent of S.W.A.T. training
and weapons. They deal with crises above the capacity of
the regular police. RSS forces have been deployed annually since 1985 in training exercises, in conjunction with forces from other Caribbean countries, the United States, and, at varying times, from Britain, France, and the Netherlands. The Tradewinds Maneuvers held between March and May, deal with amphibious missions, mainly coast guard search and rescue, oil pollution management, and port management. These exercises involved all Anglophone Caribbean countries, reflecting the growing participation that began significantly in 1989. In addition to Caribbean and U.S. forces, French troops also participated, mainly in the St. Kitts-Nevis leg, and on a bilateral basis with St. Kitts-Nevis. Subsequent exercises emphasized different islands and focusing on different issues such as focus on disaster preparedness, marine pollution, and search and rescue operations. |
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OPENING REMARKS BY RAND BEERS, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE,
BUREAU FOR INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AFFAIRS,
DEPARTMENT OF STATE SEPTEMBER 8, 1999 WASHINGTON, DC "...On the subject of strengthening regional security forces, I am pleased to report the already completed or scheduled imminent delivery to Caribbean states of a total of eight 82-foot patrol boats and four C-26 aircraft, plus development at INL expense of a sensor package for those aircraft. In addition, INL country program funds are being used in several countries to repair existing vessels and procure new ones. Most importantly, several Caribbean countries are themselves procuring at great cost additional vessels and aircraft or refitting existing vessels, to put in the fight against drugs...." |