PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC)—A senior Trinidad and Tobago government minister has come to the defence of the country’s Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar after she was labelled a “drunk” by Venezuela’s Minister of Popular Power for Interior, Justice and Peace Diosdado Cabello.

Homeland Security Minister, Roger Alexander, speaking at the weekly post Cabinet news conference on Thursday, took offence to the label, describing the Venezuelan government minister “a mad man”.

The war of words between the two countries has escalated since the Persad Bissessar administration came out publicly in support of the United States sending naval and military troops to waters near Venezuela as part of Washington’s crackdown on narco- trafficking.

Earlier this week, Persad Bissessar praised the US military strike on an alleged drug-carrying vessel in the southern Caribbean, which the White House said had killed 11 “narco-terrorists” who were part of the Tren de Aragua Venezuelan gang.

She said she had “no sympathy for traffickers” and that the US military should “kill them all violently.

“I, along with most of the country, am happy that the US naval deployment is having success in their mission,” Persad Bissessar added.

But on Wednesday, while speaking on Venezuelan television, Cabello said that the attack on the vessel was wrong since those killed were not involved in drug trafficking.

“This is just starting. For example, the stupid crook who governs the Dominican Republic and the drunk woman who governs Trinidad, when they… side with this attack, they are condemning their people to be executed at sea. Their fishermen are being condemned to execution,” Cabello said.

But Alexander told reporters he found it “very offensive” for the Venezuelan minister to have described Persad Bissessar in that manner, saying “you are calling persons names.”

“We don’t do that here, but…if he could identify her as that, probably he is either that too or he is a mad man. It would be fair to say…(based) on what is happening now and the United States that he is facilitating drugs in his country. Is he a drug pusher? Is he a pimp? So you see where we could go with this,” said Alexander, a former senior police officer here.

Cabello said Trinidad and Tobago and other Caribbean fishermen face the prospect of being killed at sea as a result of Port of Spain’s decision to align with the US after the lethal American boat strike in Caribbean waters.

Cabello cited many reports of the event in international media, claiming questions were beginning to arise on the US’ action, its legality, and the information provided by its officials.

Reading from a written statement, he referred to the strike as an illegal massacre in international waters, reiterating that Venezuela was not complicit in drug trafficking or executions at high sea.

“….not even in the movies have we ever seen one stop or take-down of a drug cartel in the United States, and it is the country in the world where the inhabitants consume it the most,” he said.

Meanwhile, the state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) says it has suspended all its flights to Venezuela during the month of September.

In a statement, CAL gave no reasons for the decision saying “any further updates on the Caracas operation” will be available on its website “and all social media platforms.”

CAL said customers who would be affected by the decision to suspend the flights for the month of September are entitled to a refund or could be booked on future flights, thanking customers “for your understanding and any inconvenience is regretted.”