— says Admiral Faller, focus is on peaceful resolution of border controversy

THERE is no plan to set up a military base in Guyana or anywhere in the hemisphere, Commander of the Defence Department’s Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Admiral Craig Faller said on Tuesday. The Admiral was, at the time, responding to a question at a joint media conference with Chief-of-Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Brigadier, Godfrey Bess at State House. Admiral Faller and Brigadier Bess signed an Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement to strengthen security cooperation in logistics, repairs and supplies as well as trade in goods and services between the two countries. “The United States does not seek to have bases anywhere in the hemisphere; we seek to have the right military presence as invited by our sovereign partners. We only come at the request of mutual agreed upon partnership for exercise or training,” he said.

He added that the US military’s future presence in Guyana’s jurisdiction will be determined by the host and friends. “That presence will be in the form of exercises, training and working with forces in the jungle and the rivers and offshore,” the U.S admiral said.  When asked about the support of the U.S. military in response to aggression from Venezuela, the Admiral noted that his country supports a peaceful resolution of the border controversy and respect for the ongoing judicial process. “We want to work hard on education and training so we never have to fight. The US supports the international process in place for a peaceful resolution,” he noted, assuring that the focus now is working on areas to enhance bilateral relationships. “Every nation deserves the right to sovereignty and to make sovereign decisions over its resources,” he added.

Chief of Staff, Brigadier Godfrey Bess said Guyana remains committed to a peaceful resolution of the border controversy with Venezuela. “We will continue to have cooperation with the United States of America, what we call defence diplomacy and cooperation, to continue to build capacity in the GDF,” he said, noting that this will help Guyana to stand ready to ensure the national patrimony is always protected. Underscoring that the GDF has noted with concern the rhetoric from leaders in Venezuela, Brigadier Bess said the Commander-in-Chief, Dr. Irfaan Ali, continues to work through diplomatic channels to ensure that the controversy is solved peacefully. “We are using the diplomatic channel. As we speak, I am aware that the heads of CARICOM governments are meeting and the CARICOM community has denounced the position Venezuela has taken. The OAS Secretary-General has also denounced that and lots of our bilateral and international partners have been in support of our position on the border issue,” Brigadier Bess said.