CLA News / When International Law and Great Power Competition Collide by Deniece Alleyne

The Caribbean region is in the popular imagination, a halcyon place where society moves along placidly and sun, sea and sand are almost armour against the problems in the world which are all safely far away. This view is a carefully cultivated fiction developed by the originators of the tourism industry in the late 19th century as the pivot from extractive agriculture began when sugar fortunes declined due to competition from sugar beet and other markets that could operate economies of scale. As any student of Caribbean history knows, this region has always been a stage for fierce great power competition and the hundreds of military artifacts, on land and under the sea, bear witness to those centuries when European empires were forged on these islands and territories.

Even more recently, the Caribbean was an active theatre of the cold war where the USA and then USSR competed for dominance leading to revolutions in Cuba and Grenada and interventions in the independence struggles in Jamaica, Guyana and elsewhere. The names of Maurice Bishop and Walter Rodney cause reminiscences of brilliant lives cruelly cut short that could have made significant contributions to Caribbean politics and economics had they not become casualties.

Yet, it would be incorrect to say that the last three decades, since the end of the cold war, have not been uneventful in international relations for the Caribbean region. Despite fairly minor differences, such as diplomatic recognition of China or Taiwan, the region has enjoyed a fairly benign foreign policy where the emerging threats including terrorism were oceans away. Our business environment could operate without considering geopolitical risk.

The American election of 2024 has drastically altered that paradigm. The new administration has accelerated trends that had been emerging for the last decade as the emergence of China as a great power has resurrected the conflicts that bedevilled Europe in the 19th century and lead to 2 devastating global wars and the ascension of the USA as the preeminent global power. The USA built what used to be known as the international rules-based order and enforced it through unprecedented military expansion and a nuclear arsenal but also soft power like USAID and Radio Free Europe/ Asia. It maintained the world trade organization and global trade rules ensuring “free” trade and globalization which, for all its flaws, did lift millions out of abject poverty.

That world is no more. In the same vein as USAID and Radio Free Europe/Asia the “free” trade and international rules-based order has been eviscerated by the new American president. In its place there is a return to protectionism not seen since the 1930s with punishing tariffs that has caused a dramatic increase in the cost of basic goods throughout the Caribbean. In addition to this economic pressure there has been significant political pressure most recently the USA cautioned CARICOM member states not to vote for the already agreed Net-Zero Shipping Framework (NZF) at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) meeting that was held on 17th October. That extraordinary session was adjourned for 12 months due to the controversy that has erupted owing to the drastic change of American policy.

These effects pale in comparison to the newest development where the USA has assumed authority to attack vessels belonging to other countries in international waters under the guise of interdiction of narcotics trafficking. In mid August the USA confirmed a massive military build-up in the Caribbean Sea which included three Aegis guided-missile destroyers, three amphibious assault ships and two other U.S. Navy vessels with about 6,000 sailors and Marines in total. The amphibious assault ships have a variety of aircraft on board, and the U.S. deployed F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico in September. Additionally, there is a Navy submarine also operating off South America that is capable of carrying and launching cruise missiles.

All of this is ostensibly to combat drug gangs, mostly from Venezuela, which the USA designated as foreign terrorist organizations since late January. As of 23rd October, 37 persons are believed to have been killed because of 9 military strikes on vessels allegedly trafficking narcotics including two nationals of Trinidad and Tobago. These strikes began on 2nd September, and the USA has designated those onboard as “enemy combatants” which excludes them from considerations that protect soldiers in international law. Both Antigua & Barbuda and, more poignantly, Grenada have announced requests by the USA to host military radar installations at their international airports. Antigua and Barbuda has announced its refusal to accommodate this request, but Grenada has yet to announce a decision. Suddenly, the Caribbean is again a stage for competition among empires.

It cannot be ignored that China has agreed to sell Venezuela its latest generation fighter jets, sent a floating oil refinery to reopen the petroleum industry shuttered by US sanctions and deployed its own naval mission to Latin America. There are also reports of Iran setting up a drone factory in Venezuela. In this tense environment Venezuela has issued threats to Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana of “retaliation” for any American military action taken against it from their territory. CARICOM, for its part, finds itself in a sensitive position. Its recently issued statement on the military build-up is as vague as it is possible to be and still Trinidad and Tobago reserved its position.

The reality is that CARICOM must strike an impossible balance. There is no doubt that the Caribbean is in the USA’s sphere of influence and has suffered from the Monroe doctrine. Yet as sovereign nations they cannot simply surrender the rules-based international order. The US is not a signatory to United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, but has previously acted in a manner consistent with its provisions. Under the convention, countries agree not to interfere with vessels operating in international waters. There are limited exceptions to this which allow a state to seize a ship, such as a “hot pursuit” where a vessel is chased from a country’s waters into the high seas. Further, under Article 2(4) of the UN charter, countries can resort to force when under attack and deploying their military in self-defence.

Clearly the current situation in the southern Caribbean is not in accordance with the position in international treaties or the practice that has been the norm and thus customary international law over many decades. Until this year the USA stopped suspicious vessels and arrested crews within this region as it was understood that basic due process of law was the entitlement even of suspected narcotics traffickers. CARICOM countries have no place in any military conflict and threats must be taken seriously but a diplomatic response, firmly committing to upholding international law especially in our home region must be unambiguous.

Author: Deniece Alleyne

Partner, HazelAlleyne Law Office Attorneys-at-Law & Notaries Public
Victoria Road, Basseterre, St. Kitts, West Indies
www.hazelalleynelaw.com

The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author.