00:00The Assembly of Caribbean People shares the view by some internationally that United States Action in the Caribbean is intended to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
00:11This is being communicated by a member of the ACP's Regional Executive Committee, David Abdullah.
00:16So it is about regime change.
00:18But surely Mr. Abdullah, yes, what is the objective?
00:22Hydrocarbons. Venezuela still sits on the largest reserves of oil in the world.
00:27And therefore, Mr. Trump has rejected the whole idea of climate change.
00:32He has withdrawn from the Paris Accord, climate accord.
00:35He wants to ramp up oil production and so on.
00:40He also believes it is a strategy allowing the U.S. to keep an eye on China and its growing strength in the Caribbean.
00:47Abdullah says that the U.S.'s narco-trafficking narrative has been falling apart in light of the deployment of thousands of troops
00:54and what he calls purely offensive military assets.
00:59Guided missiles and destroyers are to attack another country, targets in another country.
01:0610,000 troops doesn't deal with a pirogue with four big or more motors on it, right?
01:13Those things just don't equate.
01:14He says narco-trafficking could have been tackled through the strengthening of the present military-to-military agreements
01:21that the United States has in this country and, by extension, other countries in the region.
01:26But on the flip side...
01:28The guns that are killing all people are coming from the United States primarily, yes?
01:35That is why CARICOM has been urging the United States to strengthen the stopping of the export of guns out of the U.S. into the Caribbean.
01:46The ACP has passed a declaration through its regional executive committee with an attached petition,
01:52open to people from around the world, which has now garnered over 500 signatures.
01:57The declaration calls on CARICOM heads to meet urgently and come to a position against U.S. military deployment in the Caribbean.
02:05The ACP's declaration also affirms that the Caribbean must remain a zone of peace.
02:11We further call on the governments of Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana to withdraw their statements,
02:17which undermine regional unity, are disrespectful of other CARICOM member states,
02:23and contrary to CARICOM objectives of acting on the basis of common foreign policy positions.
02:29And we further call on these governments not to allow the U.S. to use their countries as a military staging point
02:37to attack any sovereign state, and in this instance, Venezuela.
02:42The ACP says different countries across the region are engaging in various types of demonstrations against what is transpiring.
02:50According to Abdullah, the situation is fracturing CARICOM,
02:54and the ACP makes a call to Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness.
02:58As the chair of CARICOM, to call an emergency CARICOM summit,
03:02which he has not done since this issue arose two months ago,
03:06so that we at least will know, because CARICOM has issued not a single statement about this issue.
03:11Not a single statement.
03:12And that is an indication of the fracture.
03:15Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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