OPPOSITION Senator Faris Al‑Rawi says Trinidad and Tobago’s participation in regional security initiatives with the United States is not new, warning that the Government should be careful of “grand charging” tactics and the country should not rely on a state of emergency (SoE) as its main crime-fighting strategy.

His comments came while speaking with reporters outside the Parliament yesterday, where he responded to questions on Trinidad and Tobago signing on to the US Southern Command Counter Cartel initiative under the Shield of the Americas security framework.

Al-Rawi said T&T has maintained security cooperation with the United States for many years and described the partnership as a continuation of existing arrangements. “Trinidad signing on to the Counter Cartel Summit of the Shield of the Americas is certainly a step, but it is built upon things that have existed for quite a while. The Southern Command and T&T have had countless interactions for years. Literally just before the last general election, Operation Tradewinds was here in T&T, so that was the Southern Command. The SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) agreement has been a feature of our laws for a very long time.”