Senior military and security leaders from the United States and the Caribbean pose for a group photo during the Caribbean Nations Security Conference (CANSEC) 2024 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, on December 11, 2024. CANSEC brought together defense and security leaders from 16 nations for discussions on cooperation to counter threats in the Caribbean and strengthen regional disaster response. SOUTHCOM PUBLIC AFFAIRS
THE WATCH STAFF
Caribbean defense and security officials and U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) leaders met to discuss regional challenges and cooperation during the Caribbean Nations Security Conference (CANSEC) 2024 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, in early December 2024. U.S. Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey, commander of SOUTHCOM, and Vice Air Marshal Darryl Daniel, chief of staff of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force, co-hosted the annual conference.
Officials exchanged ideas, experiences and perspectives on collaborative efforts to address transnational security threats and disaster response in the 21st century. Holsey met with regional leaders, including Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley. “Our commonalities go beyond common terrain. We are bound by shared history, culture, values and economics. We dedicate ourselves to upholding established norms and universal values, like respect for human rights and the rule of law,” Holsey said at the opening ceremony.
“Still, the threats we face continue to evolve. Democratic governance is being assailed by authoritarian and communist governments, who, under the guise of investment, have come to the Western Hemisphere to extract, while championing the virtues of autocracy,” Holsey said.
This year’s conference theme was “Strengthening Bonds, Securing Futures: United for Regional Security.” Security and defense ministers, chiefs of defense, and other high-ranking officials from Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago attended.
Observers included Canada, Colombia, France, Mexico and the United Kingdom. Representatives from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency, the Inter-American Defense Board, the Regional Security System, the U.S. National Guard Bureau and other U.S. government agencies, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, and the William J. Perry Center also took part as observers.
The conference began with a discussion on cyber challenges and efforts to improve regional cybersecurity, according to a report by Diálogo Americas, a digital military magazine published by SOUTHCOM. One session addressed the use of data analytics to improve decision-making and underscored the importance of information sharing. Technologies such as enhanced domain awareness and artificial intelligence were also considered essential to the decision-making process of regional defense and security forces.
A delegation from the Bahamas was led by Commodore Raymond E. King, commander of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF), alongside Chief Petty Officer Vaughn Ferguson and Commander Delvonne Duncombe. The Bahamas delegation actively contributed to sessions on countering multidomain threats with advanced technologies and enhancing regional disaster response mechanisms, according to a post on the RBDF website.
“As allies and partners, it is imperative that we continue our efforts across all domains to increase readiness, build capacity, and develop resiliency necessary to overcome enduring threats,” Holsey said. “Change sometimes takes time. But the commitment to change starts the moment we all decide to act. It is our collective responsibility to act.”
CANSEC is sponsored annually by SOUTHCOM and was last hosted by Trinidad and Tobago in 2018. U.S. and regional forces routinely train together in annual exercises, including Tradewinds, a multinational training exercise focused on Caribbean security. U.S. military and Caribbean partners also collaborate in efforts to detect, disrupt and dismantle transnational criminal organizations and traffickers, and collaborate on efforts to strengthen humanitarian assistance and disaster response capabilities in the region, a SOUTHCOM news release says.
“The power of our partnership will prove the strength of democracy to people of this region and the world,” Holsey said.