Initiation of Security Cooperation with Caribbean

Initiation of Security Cooperation Dialogue with Caribbean Leaders

Statement by Secretary Condoleezza Rice

New York City

September 25, 2008

In a September 25 meeting with leaders of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Dominican Republic, I announced the United States’ support for and commitment to begin immediately a wide-ranging U.S.-Caribbean security cooperation dialogue.

Through this dialogue, the United States and our Caribbean partners will identify the means to counter the threats posed to our citizens and our democratic states by illicit trafficking in drugs, persons, and weapons. We will also develop long-term solutions to the vulnerabilities that make our nations targets of exploitation by organized crime and drug trafficking cartels. In the coming months, the United States will work closely with our Caribbean partners to articulate a framework for expanding cooperation and marshalling resources in common response to these shared challenges.

ENDS

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