00:00TV6 News sent a question on Wednesday to Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr. Amy Brown
00:05to find out if the government of Trinidad and Tobago had communicated any congratulations
00:10to President-elect Donald Trump on his victory in the elections held in the United States
00:16on Tuesday.
00:17Foreign Minister Brown said the United States of America remains a most critical partner
00:22of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and that the government congratulates President
00:26Trump on his victory and looks forward to excellent and productive relations with him
00:31and his team in 2025 and beyond.
00:34The Foreign Minister said the Prime Minister has written to President Trump conveying the
00:38official congratulations of Trinidad and Tobago.
00:41In his letter, a copy of which was sent to the media by the Foreign Affairs Ministry,
00:46Prime Minister Rowley wrote to President Trump, quote, We look forward to further strengthening
00:51our cooperation in the years ahead.
00:53I have every confidence that under your stewardship, the relationship with the Republic of Trinidad
00:59and Tobago and the wider Caribbean community, Caricom, will continue to prosper, end quote.
01:05Minister Brown told TV6 News that the Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs is prepared
01:10and fully capable of doing everything that is required for the advancement of the relationship
01:16between Trinidad and Tobago and the new U.S. administration, always with the best interests
01:21of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean community at heart.
01:25Recent progress with regard to the supply of natural gas from Venezuela's Dragon Field
01:29to Trinidad and Tobago has resulted from the talks the government led by Prime Minister
01:34Dr. Keith Rowley had with the administration in Venezuela led by President Nicolas Maduro
01:40and the present administration in the United States led by the current President Joe Biden.
01:46Prime Minister Rowley and Energy Minister Stuart Young have been directly involved in
01:50some of those discussions.
01:52During the TV6 Morning Edition program on Wednesday, a question about that matter was
01:56posed to Dr. Keron Niles, lecturer at the Institute of International Relations at the
02:01University of the West Indies at St. Augustine campus.
02:04Dr. Niles first spoke about Venezuela in the context of its border dispute with Guyana.
02:11So I think it's going to be good news for Guyana that if Trump takes a fulmer stand
02:16in Venezuela, I think that the Guyanese are going to welcome a fulmer stand in Venezuela
02:20for sure.
02:21And I think for CARICOM being a zone of peace, I think that's going to be good, right?
02:27For us, in terms of the commercialization of the unitized gas field, that may not necessarily
02:37be the best news for our business people, but they're going to try to work out some
02:42arrangements to make it happen.
02:44The government has said its negotiations with Venezuela led to the dismantling of the
02:48unitization agreement for the low-end manatee gas field in favor of a deal that would allow
02:53Trinidad and Tobago to monetize the gas on the manatee side in local waters.
02:58TV6 News sought a comment from the foreign minister about whether the new Trump administration,
03:04which will be the second led by the former U.S. president, now president-elect, should
03:08cause any concern where Trinidad and Tobago's deal for the supply of natural gas from Venezuela
03:14is concerned.
03:15Foreign Affairs Minister Brown told TV6 News, quote, as always, we shall do our best to
03:21ensure positive and productive relations which would facilitate the advancement of national
03:26priorities and interests in the energy sector, in trade and investment, in security, and
03:32across all sectors, end quote.
03:35Opposition leader Kamala Harris-Bissett issued a statement on Wednesday extending her and
03:39her party's sincerest congratulations to Mr. Trump on his election as the 47th president
03:46of the United States of America.
03:48The opposition leader said what truly stands out about President Trump's victory is the
03:52coalition of interests that came together, united by his vision to restore conservative
03:57American values and ideals which have been under attack by what Mrs. Bissett called promoters
04:04of extreme far-left ideology.
04:07Jules Brown, TV6 News.
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