Steady and cool heads must shape Ja’s foreign policy
We are living in a brave new world. Well, that can’t be said too much these days.
With a Donald Trump in the White House, who is incapable of even restraining himself from the slightest possible insults, small-island states like Jamaica need stable, conscious, and thoughtful Government to guide it safely through the choppy waters of international affairs.
At this time, Jamaica needs a Government that is strong in its convictions but most importantly willing to change and adapt to changing circumstances on the international scene. That’s what Jamaica is fortunate to have right now. This Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Administration has demonstrated that calm, collected approach in dealing with the very unpredictable world we are in.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness, on the world stage, has exemplified that in the way how he is going about seeking new partnerships with nation’s far and wide. I think that’s a good move and must be the cornerstone of our foreign policy. Not something that is moored to a particular ideology, but one that is flexible and adaptable to serving Jamaica’s interest.
In times like these, old foreign policy positions need to be reassessed to figure out what is in our best interest. We have seen evidence of that so far on the position Jamaica took on abstaining from voting on the Jerusalem matter. That was, and still continues to be, in my mind, a necessary and courageous position to have taken.
Even within Caricom, the JLP Administration started off very well. They confronted the vexing issue of the treatment of Jamaicans in Trinidad, which reached crisis proportions under the previous People’s National Party Government, and got significant concessions that have gone a very long way in securing Jamaicans’ rights in Caricom. Some of the problems that we used to see almost nightly on the news, of ill-treatment of Jamaicans, are no more thanks to the efforts of Foreign Affairs Minister Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, whom I regard very highly based on the job that she is doing.
The question that must take up a lot of our thoughts, these days, is not only crime — as important as that is — but how does Jamaica hold its own in an ever-changing world, preserve its historic partnership with traditional allies, and expand the list of countries that we have friendly relationship with — all that time doing it strictly on the basis of what is best for us. How do we strengthen our partnership or create new ones with the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and others must be on the forefront of any foreign policy position for economic matters. We need to partner with these countries for export market and expertise and investment.
Should we push for Caricom to have a free trade deal with the European Union formally, like what it has with South Korea and others? Should we call on countries like Colombia, Israel and Russia who have all fought terrorists, in one way shape or form, to assist us physically in training our security services to combat our local terrorists? How do we navigate the expected shift even further away from the traditional America-led Western alliance that we have grown up with that has provided peace and security since 1945? All these and more are all foreign policy positions that I think Jamaica should consider this year, and going forward, and have a clear plan on how to address them.
Because much more than what is patently obvious to everybody now, Jamaica’s future is going to depend substantially on external factors, beyond our control. That is a sobering thought considering where we are at this moment in time.
One thing that allows me to sleep well at night is knowing that there is an Andrew Holness at the helm, ably supported by Kamina Johnson Smith, who understands and can take us forward. It’s a lot more reassuring than having a pretty face and no substance.
Steady, thoughtful and cool heads are what Jamaica needs to navigate a fast-changing, chaotic and scary international landscape. We have that in Holness and Johnson Smith.
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