United States Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch says that the just concluded Tradewinds 2021 military exercise provide a unique opportunity for participating nations to improve inter-operability and effectively execute missions together.
“At the Jungle and Amphibious Training School, I saw first-hand how our nations learned from each other about everything from executing tactical operations to mapping strategic manoeuvres,” she stated at the closing ceremony held on Friday at the Guyana National Stadium at Providence.
The Ambassador further lauded the exercise for adding a new component to the training, which highlighted the role that women play in conflict prevention, conflict management and conflict resolution.
“We know the new skills learned, key techniques shared and relationships fostered over the last few weeks will help us to work better today and help to save lives friends and neighbours in the region,” she later added.
Meanwhile, US Army Southern Command Major General Rafael Ribas declared that the array of skills learned throughout the last 14 days of Operation Tradewinds 2021 will see better coordination of countries responding to natural disasters and security threats.
“We may not know when the next big crisis might come but we must continue to train together to conquer it,” Ribas said in his address yesterday at the conclusion of the 2021 Tradewinds exercise.
Addressing troops from the 14 participating countries, Ribas said exercises of this magnitude illustrate the importance of partnerships when responding to a crisis. He pointed out that the knowledge gained will not only aid in faster responses but allow countries to prepare better and recover faster from threats and crises.
He said that while the US and the Caribbean share the same values, such as the rule of law, free and fair elections and respect for human rights, they also face similar threats such as illicit trafficking, natural disasters and the current pandemic.
“The Caribbean is a vital and important region to US Southern Command, US government and the US people. We want to continue to be your most trusted partner,” he added.
During a cocktail reception hosted at State House on Thursday to mark the end of military exercises, President Irfaan Ali said the multinational partnerships formed are critical for the overall peace, security and stability of the region.
He said that he wants to see the participating countries continue their strong networking and the building of integral relationships.
Overall objective
“The overall objective from all of us who participated here is to ensure we build an international coalition to ensure the peace and stability of this region, to ensure the security, and to ensure this region never becomes a safe haven for transnational crime,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mark Phillips while addressing the participants at the closing ceremony yesterday, said it is imperative that the region confront key issues together, like border problems, counter-narcotics operations, combating organised crime and the threat of climate change.
“As countries of the Caribbean, sharing the same geopolitical space also means the sharing of common problems and the fact that we will be more receptive of working together to resolve them”.
The exercise, which started on June 13th and concluded yesterday, featured contingents from the US, UK, France and Caribbean countries.
Participating ranks were able to benefit from training in the areas of marksmanship, emergency medical evacuation, search, rescue and recover responses and mechanical and engineering repairs for both air and water transportation, among other things.
Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force, Brigadier Godfrey Bess declared the exercise a success as he noted that there were no injuries or casualties.
“This kind of professional adaptation and application is what delivers cohesion in planning, execution and evaluation. It is what determines overall victory to counter the emerging threats. With Exercise Tradewinds 2021, we have demonstrated that such delivery is not only possible but highly likely,” he asserted.
He said too that they will be pursuing President Ali’s recommendation to compile a master plan of best practices to aid in their development and preparation of future activities of this magnitude.
The two-week event was sponsored by the US Southern Command. Exercise Tradewinds 21 was originally scheduled for 2020 but was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Tradewinds 2021 is a Caribbean security-focused, multi-dimensional exercise conducted on the ground and sea, in the air and cyberspace. US forces have joined participating nations to conduct joint training focused on increasing regional cooperation in complex multinational security operations.
Among the participating countries were Canada, the Netherlands, Brazil, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.
Exercise Tradewinds dates back to the mid-1980s. It was first held in Saint Lucia, and Guyana first hosted the exercise in 1999. The next iteration of Exercise Tradewinds will be held in Belize and Mexico.
