US AND CARIBBEAN STATES BOLSTER SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS

The United States is bolstering its security arrangements in the Caribbean region with a series of agreements with several selected countries.

To date, agreements have been signed with Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and most recently Jamaica.

A joint statement between the US Trump administration and the Jamaican government of Prime Minister Andrew Holness describes the August 20th agreement as a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).

It said the agreement builds on the already strong bilateral security partnership acknowledged and discussed by United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and the Jamaican Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security Dr Horace Chang during their bilateral meeting in the margins of the Americas Counter Cartels Coalition Forum in Panama on August 12th.

Status of Forces Agreements(SOFA) are described as international instruments that establish and formalise the terms under which members of one country’s armed forces may be temporarily present in another country for mutually agreed activities, including training exercises and joint operations. Jamaica joins more than 120 partner nations that have similar agreements with the United States.

“Jamaica and the United States have enjoyed decades of close security cooperation.” Since the establishment of the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), members of the United States Armed Forces and JDF have participated in joint training exercises, professional exchanges, humanitarian and disaster response activities, and other forms of security cooperation,” the statement said.

“This SOFA agreement is a message to the criminal organisations in the region that the United States Armed Forces and JDF are committed to deepening and expanding their cooperation, including in their efforts to fight criminal organisations and narco-terrorists who traffic guns, drugs, and people.”

Earlier in August, the government of Guyana under President Irfaan Ali inked a Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) with the US, upgrading their existing Memorandum of Security Cooperation.

“The MoU strengthens and deepens the long-standing partnership, building on earlier cooperation in countering narcotics and wider security collaboration,” a release from the Office of the Guyanese President explained.

In a separate statement on security and related issues between the two countries, President Ali said: “Our discussions focused on strengthening the Guyana-US partnership and advancing our shared interests in prosperity, security and regional stability...I also reaffirmed Guyana’s commitment to working closely with the United States to combat drug trafficking and transnational organised crime, strengthen security cooperation, and uphold respect for territorial sovereignty.”

Last December 2025,  Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs reported that it had ‘reaffirmed’ its commitment to sustained cooperation with the United States in advancing regional safety, security, and stability.

“Through this partnership, Trinidad and Tobago has benefited from joint military training exercises, enhanced surveillance capabilities, including the installation of an effective radar system, and collaborative efforts that have contributed to the interdiction of millions of dollars’ worth of illegal narcotics.”

These agreements fall broadly under the Trump administration’s Shield of the Americas (SOTA) operation, a multinational military and political coalition established by the US President in March this year.

Participating countries in the region at varying levels of involvement are the Bahamas, Belize, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago.