Security & Strategic Review - June 2017 (ISSN 1741-4202)

The US State Department’s multi-year strategy report for engagement with the region, entitled: Caribbean 2020: A Multi-Year Strategy to Increase the Security, Prosperity, and Well-Being of the People of the United States and the Caribbean, has now been released. The December 2016 US-Caribbean Strategic Engagement Act required the report to be drawn up, and its release is well timed given the differences that the US (and much of Latin America) has with many Caribbean states over policy towards Venezuela. At its 19-21 June General Assembly in Mexico, the Organization of American States (OAS) failed once again to agree a resolution on Venezuela largely as a result of the refusal of Caribbean members who are dependent on Venezuelan oil to agree to any resolution critical of the Venezuelan government. The new strategy is likely to have significant and long-lasting effects on Caribbean nations, some positive but some more challenging.