Guyana has blundered

Dec 29, 2023 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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Kaieteur News – Guyana has blundered by allowing plans for a British warship, H.M.S Trent, to come to Guyana. It is a provocative act on the part of Guyana even if it is inadvertent.

President Ali and his team have exposed their diplomatic inexperience.  In the context of both the letter and the spirit of the Argyle Declaration, the permission for the warship to be diverted to Guyana represents a provocation. Venezuela has so interpreted the planned presence of the vessel. President Maduro has described the planned presence of the vessel as a breach of the Argyle Agreement and a threat from London.  In response, he has also ordered the activation of the Venezuelan Defense Forces.

These actions on the part of both Guyana and Venezuela have created a headache for the regional interlocutors who successfully brokered talks recently between Guyana and Venezuela. They must be wondering how could their efforts have been so undermined by the Guyana government.

The Argyle Declaration signed recently in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, obligated both Guyana and Venezuela to certain actions. These include refraining, whether by words of deeds, from escalating any conflict or disagreement between them. The decision of the government to entertain a British warship, however, has the potential to escalate tensions between the two neighboring countries. The planned presence of the vessel constitutes a breach by Guyana of the Declaration of Argyle in both letter and the spirit.

In light of the transgression committed by Guyana, Venezuela is well within its rights to now disavow the commitments it gave at the meeting with President Ali. It should have been obvious to Guyana that once it had concurred with the agreement in Argyle, there could be no accommodation for a British warship or for the presence of a retired US General in Guyana.

It is an embarrassment to Guyana and especially to those who brokered the meeting between President Irfaan Ali and President Nicholas Maduro. Both the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Chairman of CARICOM will now have to be engaged in some nifty diplomatic legwork to reverse the present situation and place the Argyle Declaration back on a sound footing.

In an act of damage-control, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo sought to downplay the presence of the British vessel. He described it as a patrol vessel and said that its presence was in keeping with plans agreed long ago to strengthen the capacity of the local army.

But that explanation does not accord with reports coming out of elsewhere. The British Broadcasting Corporation described the vessel as a warship. Even though it is also described elsewhere as a patrol vessel, it has seen duties in conflict areas such as Ukraine. It has also been deployed in military exercises of NATO. Britain has expressed support for Guyana in its controversy with Venezuela. And Britain ought to know that despite the vessel being sent to the Caribbean, it should not have been sent to Guyana given the recent tensions between Guyana and Venezuela. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the ship’s presence in Guyana is directly related to the controversy between Guyana and Venezuela.

Just before the meeting between President Ali and President Maduro, the Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines made a statement to the effect that the only winner in war is imperialism. While the imperial powers of the United States and the United Kingdom may not necessarily want a war between Guyana and Venezuela, there are sure enough not going to oppose one, given that US imperialism is engaged in an attempt to undermine the government of Venezuela. It also wants to keep Guyana dependent on and under obligation to the West.

This past week, it was reported that a retired Army General was here for talks with the government. This was also a provocative development. Why after the Argyle understanding was it necessary to have an American military adviser? What is he advising the Guyana government about: how to better equip its military?

Guyana needs no advice from the Americans. The Americans are antagonistic to Venezuela and their advice can only be used to further tensions between Guyana and Venezuela.

Guyana has personnel who can advise the government on improving the capacity and capability of the Guyana Defense Force. It certainly does not need any retired general to help with this exercise. There is only one course now available to Guyana to try to salvage the Argyle Agreement. Guyana has to ask the British Defense Ministry to have the vessel turn back. Its presence here will constitute an affront to agreement signed in St, Vincent. provocation. The Guyana government should also inform that retired army general that now is not a desirable time for him to visit Guyana. He can send whatever advice he wants via email.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of this newspaper and its affiliates.)

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• British warship, H.M.S Trent, Peeping Tom, President Maduro, Venezuela

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