MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Rubio off on strategic Caribbean tour

Rubio's trip seeks broader security cooperation, similar to existing arrangements with some Gulf countries in the face of regional threats such as Iran, it was explained

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will embark on a two-day tour of the Caribbean, visiting Jamaica, Guyana, and Suriname on Wednesday and Thursday to address energy security, economic development, and overall stability while making the region less dependent on Venezuelan oil. It is Rubio's second trip to the Americas since President Donald Trump’s inauguration in January 2025.

In Jamaica, Rubio will meet with leaders from Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Haiti, including Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness, Barbados’ Mia Mottley, Trinidad and Tobago’s Stuart Young, and Haiti’s Fritz Alphonse Jean. His agenda focuses on energy diversification, especially through oil-rich Guyana and Suriname, while countering illegal immigration and transnational crime.

The visit aligns with Trump’s recent sanctions on Venezuelan oil exports and a threatened 25% tariff on countries importing it, though a temporary waiver allows Chevron to continue operations until May.

Energy security is a priority, with Mauricio Claver-Carone, Trump’s envoy for Latin America, calling it a “historic opportunity” to strengthen US ties.

Haiti’s ongoing crisis, with gangs threatening stability despite a multinational peacekeeping force, will also be discussed, though specifics remain unclear.

Rubio’s tour occurs amid regional tensions over US sanctions on Cuban medical missions, which Caribbean leaders defend as vital, though Claver-Carone dismissed this as a distraction from the trip’s main goals.

“On Wednesday and Thursday, [Rubio] will travel to Jamaica, Guyana, and Suriname. While in Jamaica, the secretary will also meet bilaterally with the heads of state of Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Haiti,” State Department Spokeswoman Tammy Bruce explained.

“The challenge, obviously, is Haiti,” Claver-Carone said. “And obviously, we all know and we share the deep commitment to tackling this challenge in Haiti.”

”This trip is going to add in the urgency of the moment and in the urgency of the situation to the development and implementation of a very targeted strategy in regards to Haiti to try to ensure that these gangs do not take over, obviously, Port-au-Prince but then expand beyond that,” Claver-Carone added.

“We are in a historic moment in the Caribbean for energy security, which has been the Achilles’ heel of the Caribbean for so long and its economic development with disproportionately high electricity and energy prices,” he also pointed out.

“The fact that now their own countries — Guyana, Suriname — are able to have and really surpass Venezuela in its oil production and be able to work with its neighbors there in the region is a huge opportunity for the Caribbean,” Claver-Carone also mentioned.