Satellite imagery has depicted what appears to be at least three United States military vessels surrounding Trinidad—one off its northern coast, and two in the Gulf of Paria.
European Space Agency (ESA) satellite Sentinel-2 L1C on Tuesday captured one large vessel, believed by experts to be the USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship deployed by the US Navy to the Caribbean earlier this year, situated just north of Diego Martin, 41 miles from Trinidad’s northern coast, and 45 from Venezuela.
The Iwo Jima is a Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD)—a type of vessel that has historically provided US Marine Corps with a means of ship-to-shore movement by helicopter, in addition to movement by landing craft.
The satellite also captured what is believed to be two US warships within the Gulf of Paria, Open Source Intelligence experts telling the Express last evening that they are likely to be a US Arleigh Burke class destroyer and an LPD (Landing Platform Dock).
Earlier this week, the Express received images of what appeared to be the USS Stockdale, an Arleigh Burke class destroyer, allegedly just off Trinidad’s coast. The Express could not independently confirm its location.
But on Tuesday, ABC journalist Matt Rivers reported that two US warships appeared to be in the waters separating Trinidad from Venezuela.
The report contained footage of what he said were two warships in the Gulf of Paria, just miles away from Venezuela and near to Trinidad that had not been immediately identified.
These types of vessels have been deployed by the US in the Caribbean since August as part of what it claims is an effort to curb drug trafficking in the region, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth last week naming the operation “Southern Spear”.
With the build-up has come at least 21 boat strikes that have thus far killed 82 people.
Joint exercises
The vessels’ appearance near Trinidad also follows an announcement from the Government of joint military exercises with the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF) and the US 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit.
In a news conference last week Friday, Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs Sean Sobers announced the joint drills were scheduled to begin on Sunday.
He said then the drills were part of an ongoing history of collaboration between the TTDF and the US military, and that joint training would take place across both Trinidad and Tobago, in urban and rural environments, with operations scheduled between dusk and after dark.
“This is one of the many side-by-side exercises that the US military has long conducted in partnership with the TTDF; it demonstrates a strong partnership,” he had said.
Asked by the media about the ships, Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander said he had no idea about their presence and that he had not seen any ships.
Apart from the ships’ sighting, just days before those exercises began aviation enthusiasts also flooded social media with reports of an unidentified aircraft traversing southern Trinidad.
The posts claimed the aircraft flew over Manzanilla, South Oropouche, Debe and Moruga between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Friday.
“Just heard a loud plane fly over South Oropouche. I’m not seeing it on radar and when I search, I see this plane flying off the coast of Manzanilla. I can’t find the loud plane flying on my side. Has anyone else spotted or heard of it?” one post read.
“This white plane has been flying above for a few weeks now. It’s not showing up on the radar,” another said. Photos and videos of the aircraft were shared on social media.
The @latammilmvmts X account, an open source intelligence account which has been tracking the military movements within the Caribbean and Latin America, told the Express the image appeared to depict a US P8 Poseidon aircraft. This, it says, was confirmed via radio traffic at that time, which was shared with the Express.
The Express previously reported on the passage of US MQ-9A reaper drones within and around Trinidad and Tobago’s airspace within the month of October, detected by The New York Times.
The Express has tried on several occasions to procure a response from Sobers and Minister of Defence Wayne Sturge, but to no avail.
A WhatsApp message delivered to Sobers yesterday asked him again about these sightings prior to announced drills, but no response was received.
NAM calls for military
assets to be removed
Yesterday the Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) urged for regional powers to “avoid provocative statements and incendiary rhetoric” and to halt airstrikes against “small fishing boats”.
It also called for extra-regional military assets to be removed from the region.
A release from the group of 120 non-aligned states expresses “deep concern” about the continued escalation and cites the presence of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford.
It warned against further deterioration, including armed attacks on the ground against Venezuela or any other member state, stating such would result in a spillover effect that would span the entire region. This, it said, must be avoided at all costs.
“The Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) calls on the extra-regional powers to act with maximum restraint, avoid provocative statements, as well as aggressive and incendiary rhetoric, and to cease any hostile action and desist once and for all from their irresponsible and reckless conduct, including carrying out airstrikes against small fishing boats in the Caribbean, and now also in the Pacific; and, instead, resort to dialogue, diplomacy, and multilateral mechanisms as the only sustainable ways to address, by peaceful and co-operative means, any matter of common interest or concern,” it said.
It also expressed support for the Caribbean and Latin America remaining a nuclear weapon-free zone by virtue of the “Zone of Peace” established by the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in 2014.
“The Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) reiterates its firm commitment to the sovereign equality, territorial integrity and political independence of all States, and underlines that the threats of use of force, intimidation or coercive interference in the internal affairs of States are contrary to the letter and spirit of the United Nations Charter; while stressing that military solutions are not an option for resolving any difference that may exist between members of the international community and that, consequently, extra-regional military assets must be withdrawn, in the interest of peace, security and stability, both regionally and internationally,” it said.
The group includes African, Caribbean and Latin American countries, and was founded in the interest of countries of the developing world in the post-Cold War.
It was shared by Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Yvan Gil Pinto yesterday, who in a post to his Instagram claimed the group represented the largest political organisation in the Global South.
The NAM’s statement follows a welcoming of US forces into the Caribbean by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who earlier this year pledged unflinching access to the country’s territory to the US in the event of Venezuelan action against Guyana.
The Prime Minister later lauded lethal strikes in the region, calling for all drug traffickers to be killed violently—a stance she has since doubled down on.
