As min­is­ters re­spon­si­ble for na­tion­al se­cu­ri­ty main­tain si­lence on on­go­ing op­er­a­tions with the Unit­ed States, act­ing For­eign Af­fairs Min­is­ter Bar­ry Padarath says that joint mil­i­tary train­ing with Wash­ing­ton will con­tin­ue.

Yes­ter­day, the Unit­ed States Ma­rine Corps 22nd Ma­rine Ex­pe­di­tionary Unit (MEU), which was de­ployed to the Unit­ed States South­ern Com­mand (SOUTH­COM), was sched­uled to end its train­ing with the Trinidad and To­ba­go De­fence Force (TTDF). The train­ing be­gan on No­vem­ber 16 and end­ed yes­ter­day.

There has been grow­ing pub­lic scruti­ny over the Gov­ern­ment’s han­dling of re­cent se­cu­ri­ty co­op­er­a­tion. Yes­ter­day, the Min­is­ter of Home­land Se­cu­ri­ty de­clined to an­swer re­porters’ ques­tions, walk­ing past the me­dia silent­ly as he head­ed in­to Par­lia­ment.