Caribbean & Central America - May 2026

Most Caribbean nations are concerned about the trajectory of US foreign policy under President Donald Trump. Within the Caribbean Community (Caricom), only Trinidad & Tobago gave its unequivocal support to the US over the January seizure of Venezuela’s then-president Nicolás Maduro (2013-2026) and US strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean. Following the military operation Maduro, Caricom issued a statement saying that it was “firmly committed to the fundamental principles of international law and multilateralism enshrined in the UN Charter”. On 10 March, the 12^th UK-Caribbean Ministerial Forum was held in London, and it was notable how often and firmly this point was reiterated in the final communiqué, issued on 7 April. It also affirmed that the fight against terrorism must respect international law and conventions.

Nowhere in the communiqué was the US or the Trump administration mentioned, but there could be little doubt that a number of references to “evolving geopolitical realities” were prompted by current US foreign policy, perhaps in particular the reassertion of the Monroe Doctrine and what is being referred to as the ‘Trump Corollary’ – that is, the administration’s self-declared right to intervene in Latin America and the Caribbean to ensure stability, to counter large-scale migration and transnational crime, and to oppose the increased regional influence of non-hemispheric competitors such as China over important strategic assets.

Point four of the 61-point final communiqué set the tone by recording that ministers had “agreed to refocus their partnership to meet the challenges of the rapidly changing geopolitical environment and reaffirmed their support for multilateralism and the international rules-based order as the primary safeguard of the interests of the Small Island Development States (SIDS) on the global stage”.

A little later on, in point 10, the communiqué affirmed that ministers had “renewed their commitment to a universal, rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, fair, inclusive, equitable and transparent trading system with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) at its core”.

In point 24, the communiqué stressed that while ministers “renewed their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations” they also “reaffirmed their commitment to working together within the international community to ensure that their responses to the fight against these threats are consistent with international law and conventions”. And then, in points 56 and 57, the communiqué made a pledge to uphold “common values and shared interests”.

In point 56, “ministers reaffirmed their commitment to human rights for all, and to democratic values, good governance, and the rule of law, territorial integrity, sovereignty, multilateralism, respect for the rules-based international order, and maintaining the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.”

In point 57, “ministers reaffirmed their grave concern at the proliferation of conflicts and violations of international law, particularly human rights and humanitarian law, which undermine international peace and security. Ministers called for full adherence to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the Commonwealth Charter, particularly the prohibition on the threat or use of force.”