Cayman to invest in radar amid Trump’s Caribbean drug war

Plans to launch a ‘domain awareness radar’, were revealed in the Strategic Policy Statement published on 15 Oct.

According to the document the new installation would provide “real-time monitoring of Cayman’s waters and airspace to enhance national border and maritime security”.

It comes during a tense time for regional security, with the US government recently taking unprecedented actions against suspected drug cartel boats in the Caribbean Sea.

“Previous US administrations have interdicted vessels and seized drugs,” said James Bosworth, founder of Hxagon, a political risk consultancy and author of the Latin American Risk Report. “But what’s different this time is that the US are sinking boats without warning.”

While the US might be taking more robust action in the Caribbean, it is the UK that is responsible for protecting Cayman’s borders. “We’re spending a lot of time looking at what is going on in the wider region,” said Governor Jane Owen, speaking on the Forefront show on 9 Oct prior to the publication of the statement.

“Our Coast Guard is looking at bringing in some new radars and we will be continuing to talk to other overseas territories about how we can have a holistic approach and put together the data coming from different radars,” said Owen. “We’re also reaching out to some of the independent states in our region, such as the Bahamas and Jamaica, because we know that we’ve got to work together on this as a challenge.”

The US has also been working to incorporate Caribbean nations into its regional security push, with Grenada confirming the US has requested to install a radar on the island.

“The US is benefitting from a Caribbean security populist moment right now,” said Bosworth. “We’ve seen positive responses from the governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic to the more robust US approach in the Caribbean. Lawyers and academics might argue about the legality of the policy, but many in the region are pleased to see strong action being taken against drug cartels.”

UK and US regional security

“I think it’s not really for me to comment on what the Americans are doing, but we do share their concern about the flow of illicit drugs, arms and people,” said Owen.

In addition to being NATO partners, the US and UK traditionally have a close military and security relationship. “We normally see the British and the Dutch cooperate with the US in the Caribbean,” said Bosworth. “But you have to assume they are not onboard with blowing up drug boats – it’s a very Trump policy. So, for the UK it’s a fine line between working with the US but not getting drawn into extra-judicial killings.”

The good news for Cayman is that the regional security situation is unlikely to get worse, says Bosworth. “The US hasn’t assembled sufficient force to invade Venezuela, so we won’t see an outright war. And more cocaine gets to the US via the Pacific, so eventually we should see US naval assets redeployed away from the Caribbean.”