Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is standing firm and not bowing to any pressure from Venezuela, asserting that Trinidad and Tobago will not be blackmailed and is not dependent on any Venezuelan gas.

She declared that no one – be it the Venezuelan Government, the People’s National Movement (PNM), Caricom, or any other entity – will “pressure or blackmail” her Government into retreating from the fight against the drug cartels.

In response to questions from the Express, the Prime Minister shrugged off reports that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said a proposal was being made by the board of the Venezuelan state-owned company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) to President Nicolás Maduro to suspend all gas agreements with T&T.