Guyana should be free of U.S. Military Base – Norton

May 11, 2024 News

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Kaieteur News – Amidst an ongoing border dispute between Guyana and neighbouring Venezuela, Leader of the Opposition, Aubrey Norton believes there should be no establishment of a military base here by the Unites States of America (USA).

Norton during his weekly engagement with the media was asked by this publication to give his views on the establishment of a US Military Base here as Guyana and the US work towards deeper “defence cooperation”.

Guyana has been increasing its defence capabilities through its allies, in the face of renewed threats from Venezuela which claims ownership of Essequibo- some two thirds of this country.

Only yesterday it was reported that two U.S. Navy aircraft on Thursday made a flyover Guyana’s coast. The US F/A-18F Super Hornets, embarked on the USS George Washington conducted the Guyana Defence Force-coordinated and approved flyover of Georgetown and its surrounding areas. The flyover commenced at 2:00 pm, with collaboration and approval from the Government of Guyana, the US Embassy said in a press release.  Members of the public were advised that the exercise was built upon routine security cooperation and bilateral defense partnership between the US and Guyana.

Norton told reporters Friday that he was unaware of the planned flyover by the American military jets. He was keen to note however that the government should be mindful that its actions have implications in the realm of foreign policy.

“Like every other Guyanese, I read it in the news and so I don’t know what factor determines it. What I do know is that in foreign policy, every act that you would have taken has implications and while there might be some elements to them flying over, there are negative elements which we also have to look at,” the Opposition Leader stressed.

In fact, he said was he in the position of government, the activity would have been dealt with “slightly different”.

It would be important to note that shortly after the US Military exercise in Guyana, Venezuela’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Yvan Gil said it was “further proof of the provocations to Venezuela by the US Southern Command” and a breach of the December 14, 2023 Argyle agreement between the two countries.

The Leader of the Opposition then pointed out that while there are pros and cons to having a U.S. Military Base in-country, Guyana should steer clear from such an operation at this time.

“I believe that there are dangers in having a base, there are positives in having a base. We have to also cater for our neighbours Brazil who I know have concerns about military bases in this Region and they are critical to the support for Venezuela so I would prefer to get all the data at my disposal and to address it and eke out what is Guyana’s best interest,” Norton posited.

Although the Opposition Leader opted to carefully study the subject before making a pronouncement, he noted, “Generally, I would be inclined to have Guyana free of those activities, if only because we have a controversy with Venezuela and we prefer all of these things to be dealt with within the realms of diplomacy rather than any form of military (involvement).”

Norton explained that the Opposition is not privy to the military exercises being carried out by the Government of Guyana (GoG) to boost the country’s defence capabilities, although the two sides have agreed to cooperate on the border dispute.

“The government has not engaged me on the Guyana/ Venezuela territorial controversy or on any other issue since we met just to talk before the Argyle Declaration when I made certain positions clear,” Norton said.

In January this year, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for the Western Hemisphere at the U.S. Department of Defense, Daniel P. Erikson was asked about the plans of the U.S. to set up a military base in the Caribbean region.

Erikson was at the time engaging with local members of the print media at the U.S Embassy in Georgetown, Guyana when he explained, “The United States views the challenges posed by transnational organisations that are not just military challenges but are also legal and law enforcement challenges and therefore require the whole of government response working with our partners in the region.”

He continued, “So at this juncture, we are not foreseeing any changes in terms of what our overall posture is in this region but you know we continue to assess the situation as it evolves.”

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• jets, Military base, Norton, US, Venezuela

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