ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) — Venezuela’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Yvan Gil, has held talks with Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne, as Caracas seeks support from regional countries following the decision of the United States (US) to increase its military presence near the South American country.

Gil, who was accompanied by the Vice Minister for the Caribbean, Raul Li Causi, also held talks with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Ambassador Clarence Pilgrim, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Foreign affairs.

Last week, the United States ordered an amphibious squadron to the southern Caribbean as part of President Donald Trump’s effort to address threats from Latin American drug cartels.

A nuclear-powered attack submarine, additional P8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft, several destroyers and a guided-missile cruiser have also been allocated to US Southern Command as part of the mission.

Venezuela has since responded to what it termed the threat posed by the United States and has itself marshalled its troops along its borders.

The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America–Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) at an extraordinary summit last week voiced support for Venezuela. Antigua and Barbuda is among several Caribbean countries affiliated to ALBA.

“On behalf of President Nicolás Maduro, we had the honour of visiting Antigua and Barbuda, where we held a constructive meeting with Prime Minister Gastón Browne. During our meeting, we discussed in depth the current geopolitical situation in the region and the various threats that jeopardise the peace and security of our peoples,” the Venezuelan foreign affairs minister said.

“In particular, we highlighted the violation of our status as a zone of peace, proclaimed by CELAC (the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) in 2014, as well as the 1967 Treaty of Tlatelolco, which establishes our region as a nuclear-weapon-free zone.

“We also reviewed the bilateral agenda and progress on regional initiatives, such as the Agro-ALBA project, which seeks to strengthen agricultural cooperation between our countries,” Gil said following the meeting on Thursday.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said Dominica remains committed to the Caribbean Community’s (Caricom) position that the Caribbean should remain a “zone of peace” even as he refused to comment on the position taken by his Trinidad and Tobago counterpart, Kamla Persad Bissessar, on the matter based on the presence of United States military off the coast of Venezuela.

“As you may be aware, many years ago, the community of Latin American countries and also Caricom declared the Caribbean as a zone of peace and we would like for this (region) to remain a zone of peace,” Skerrit told a news conference.

“Any military action in the Caribbean has serious negative impact on the way of life of every single citizen in the Caribbean and Latin America and so we would urge caution on this because any misunderstanding can flare up into something that none of us really want,” he told reporters.