The Roosevelt Skerrit led Government and the Barack Obama led United States of America administration have signed another agreement under the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative(CBSI).
The CBSI is a commitment made by President Obama at the fifth Summit of the Americas Conference in April 2009, to deepen regional security cooperation and complement the other citizen security initiatives in the Hemisphere.
The recent agreement, signed on Monday April 23, 2012 at the Finance Ministry in Roseau extends assistance to Dominica’s fight against illicit drug trafficking and effort to increase public safety.
The amended letter of agreement signed between the both Governments provides six hundred and seventy-three thousand US dollars (US$673,000.00) to Dominica. The agreement provides US$134,000.00 to help deepen the professional skills of Dominica’s law enforcement. Key aspects of this new project will include the purchase of equipment, training and the mentoring of Dominica personnel by United States Government experts.
In the area of Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption the US Government will be devoting US$343,000 to expand the capabilities of Dominica to operate prisons and correctional centers which are safe, secure, humane and in conformance with international standards.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Charge d’ Affaires/ US embassy in Barbados, Christopher Sandrolini, stated that Dominica is leading the way in the Eastern Caribbean in ensuring regional security.
“As in many other areas of law enforcement cooperation, Dominica leads the way in the Eastern Caribbean. In January 2011, Dominica was the first country in the Eastern Caribbean to sign on to the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative/Secure Seas Memorandum of Understanding, and now joins St.Vincent and the Grenadines in becoming a full partner in the Cooperative Sensor Integration Initiative. It is also important to recognize Dominica’s endorsement of the Proliferation Security Initiative today as another critical step towards ensuring regional security.”
The US Charge D’affaires said The United States has contributed by developing the Cooperative Sensor Integrated Initiative (CSII) to integrate partner nations with the United States into a regional Web Based, unclassified information sharing system covering air land and sea domains.
“As promised in the January 2011 Secure Seas MOU signed here between us, Dominica has just recently received delivery of two Secure Seas Patrol boats and we plan to jointly commission these boats into service next month after additional training for the Dominican Coast Guard is completed. Concurrent with these new interdiction vessels, CSII plays an important part of the CBSI strategy by increasing the region’s ability to identify and interdict illicit traffickers”.
Sandrolini espoused that, with the sharing of real time information, drug traffickers will be caught and prosecuted.
Adding that the US has a role beyond counter narcotics, he detailed the benefits of the agreement.
“CSII will also play an important role outside of the counternarcotics. CSII will deepen air and maritime domain awareness by improving our joint ability to assemble, visualize, analyze and share real –time, actionable data. In that regard CSII will help build Dominica’s capacities in humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and search and rescue”.
The US Government will also make US$131,000 available towards strengthening Dominica’s counternarcotics control capabilities. Under this program the United States will continue to offer training and equipment to enhance the ability of law enforcement to conduct investigations and interdict illegal trafficking.
Another area of cooperation will be devoted to combating money laundering and financial crimes. US$65,000 will be channeled towards increased training, technical assistance, mentoring and equipment for Financial Intelligence Units, the judiciary, prosecutors and bank regulatory bodies.
Prime Minister Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit said the signing the new US agreement to fight illicit drug trafficking compliments his Government’s efforts to identify and dismantle drug networks.
“Through these agreements the Government of the United States will provide assistance in locating, identifying, tracking and intercepting civil aircrafts in Dominica’s air space to facilitate the interception of illicit drug trafficking routes and the arrest of illicit drug traffickers”. Let me say very clearly that this Government which I have the honor to lead will spear no effort in combating illegal drug trafficking through our countries.”
The Prime Minister says transnational organized crime is a major concern for several countries. He said this was expressed at the recent Summit of the Americas.
“At the Summit we the heads of state and Government of the Americas reaffirmed our willingness to join forces and capabilities to confront this common challenge, committed at the highest political level to the establishment of hemispheric approach against transnational organized crime and to implement a coordinating entity to harmonize the strategies and actions of the states of the Americas against transnational organized crimes”.
Prime Minister Skerrit praised President Obama for initiating the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) and thanked the US administration for the tremendous support received thus far.
“We are very pleased with the efficiency of the United States Embassy in responding to some of our concerns with respect to the CBSI. We are also very pleased about the implementation of the CBSI thus far. I want to place on public record our profound gratitude and appreciation to the Government of the United States of America for their assistance over so many years in bringing about a safer Caribbean. There is a firm commitment by the Government of the United States to further strengthen that level of cooperation and assistance”.
Since the launch of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative in 2009, the United States has committed a total of US$2,965,000.00 in direct bilateral assistance to Dominica to reduce illicit trafficking and increase public safety.