Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine meets with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, on November 25, 2025. Trinidad and Tobago could play a key role in counter-drug trafficking in the Caribbean. (Department of Defense/Benjamin Applebaum)

How Trinidad and Tobago Took the Lead in Caribbean Security

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The island nation is providing a model for US counter-narcotics cooperation in the Caribbean.

In the wake of Operation Absolute Resolve, one Caribbean leader has stood out in her support of President Donald Trump. Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, declared that “I made no apology for standing side by side with…the leader of the free world in this hemisphere.”

That stance reflects the law-and-order policy she has pursued since taking office. Her alignment with President Trump’s campaign against narco-terrorism and narco-states positions Trinidad and Tobago as a model for the Caribbean in confronting insecurity in the Americas through partnership with the United States.

Since the late 2010s, violent crime has increased across much of Latin America and the Caribbean. Skyrocketing cocaine production in the Andes has strengthened drug traffickers, enabling them to expand their operations and intensifying competition between gangs for the control of distribution routes. The result has been the destabilization of the region and rising crime rates even in once relatively safe countries like Ecuador, Costa Rica, and Peru.

Trinidad and Tobago has not been spared. In 2024, it experienced its deadliest year on record, with a homicide rate of 45.7 per 100,000 residents. Like elsewhere, much of this violence stems from gang rivalries, often linked to drug trafficking and fueled by the flow of illegal firearms.

Much of the responsibility lies with the Venezuelan government. Trinidad and Tobago sits barely 7 miles from Venezuela, and its porous maritime borders have made it an attractive transit point for cocaine, heroin, and other narcotics bound for North America, as well as for illegal gold smuggled out of Venezuela. In addition, the Chavista regime has long provided resources and autonomy to various drug trafficking networks, helping fuel the broader surge in cocaine production and trafficking across the region, with direct spillover effects on Trinidad and Tobago.

The situation is further aggravated by a steady influx of illegal firearms from Venezuela and by the presence of Venezuelan criminal groups such as Tren de Aragua, which collaborate with local gangs and deepen the violence.

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Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar understands these dynamics, which is why she has stood with President Trump’s agenda against narco-terrorists and narco-states.

In September, she met with Secretary Marco Rubio to coordinate on counternarcotics efforts and regional stability. Two months later, she permitted the deployment of the US Marine Corps’ G/ATOR long-range sensor at ANR Robinson International Airport, providing the United States with an exceptional vantage point to monitor the Venezuelan coastline. In December, she permitted US military aircraft and personnel to transit through the country. Although Trinidad and Tobago did not directly participate in Operation Absolute Resolve, its cooperation provided the United States with critical surveillance capabilities.

Now, with Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro under arrest and President Delcy Rodriguez under pressure to cooperate with the United States, there is real reason to hope that Trinidad and Tobago will benefit. In the short term, the new government in Caracas will be pressed by the Trump administration to confront transnational criminal networks. In the long term, if Secretary Rubio’s plan succeeds and Venezuela is democratized, it would open the door to deeper collaboration against crime.

It would also create new economic opportunities. Reduced violence would strengthen Trinidad and Tobago’s tourism sector, while a more cooperative Venezuelan government could finally advance long-stalled energy projects. For years, Port of Spain and Caracas discussed developing the Dragon Gas Field and other deposits along their shared maritime border, with little progress. 

Today, with US authorization, Shell and T&T are moving forward on the Dragon Gas Field, and there is growing optimism regarding the development of other deposits by T&T and other Western companies. As Trinidad and Tobago’s energy minister noted, this provides the nation with an opportunity to position itself as an industry leader in the Caribbean.

Others in the Caribbean have taken a skeptical approach toward President Trump’s policy. For instance, during the 80th UN General Assembly, several CARICOM leaders criticized the US military build-up, calling for the Caribbean to be respected as a “zone of peace.” However, as Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar pointed out, there is no peace in the Caribbean because the cartels have been wreaking havoc in complicity with the Chavista regime.

Persad-Bissessar’s stance against transnational crime and the Chavista narco-regime, and her willingness to work closely with the United States, offer a blueprint for how Caribbean nations can pursue security and prosperity. By deepening cooperation with Washington to counter transnational crime, confront malign actors, and pursue mutually beneficial economic cooperation, Caribbean states can chart a more stable and prosperous future for the region.

About the Authors: Wilson Beaver and Fernando Castillo

Wilson Beaver is a senior policy advisor for defense budgeting at The Heritage Foundation. Before he joined Heritage in 2023, Wilson was a policy advisor on the Senate Small Business Committee, working on defense innovation grant research security as part of the SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022. Prior to that, Wilson served as a non-commissioned officer and team leader in the US Army. During his time in the Army, Wilson served as a paratrooper in the 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne). Wilson holds master’s degrees in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and in International Security from George Mason University, and a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Louisiana State University.

Fernando Castillo is a member of the Young Leaders Program at The Heritage Foundation. He earned his Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University in 2025, concentrating in Global Business, Finance, and Society.

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© The National Interest