Unity – in face of U.S. military action Sir Ronald Sanders (31 October 2025) —Four days after the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government reaffirmed the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, Prime Minister Kamla Persad‑Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago startled the region with a public statement that CARICOM should “get together” and take some of the “illegal Venezuelans” sheltering in her country, and that the Community should press Caracas to accept two hundred...
Sanctions — Coerce or Punish? Ambassador Curtis Ward (28 October 2025) — In recent months, we have not focused on U.S. sanctions against Trump administration adversaries. Yet we have seen the administration’s use of sanctions is widespread and, in many cases, more severe. These sanctions directly targeted political leaders, particularly of Venezuela and Iran. Targeting political leaders is unusual. We have also seen sanctions against Haitian gang leaders and others connected to them;...
Former Heads of CARICOM states call for the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace Eleven former heads of government of CARICOM states, led by the Most Hon. P. J. Patterson, former prime minister of Jamaica, have issued a joint statement pleading for maintaining the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace where the Rule of Law is respected. The former prime ministers signing the statement are: Baldwin Spencer (Antigua and Barbuda), Said Musa and Dean Barrow (Belize), Freudel Stuart (Barbados), Edison James...
A New World Order—or the formal admission of the Old? Sir Ronald Sanders (22 October 2025) —The world has long spoken of a “rules-based order,” as though the law itself held dominion over power. Yet, behind the diplomatic courtesies and the fine print of charters, it was power that wrote the rules and altered them at will. The difference today is that the altering is done in full view and only a few feign surprise. We all knew what the Order was even when we hoped for better. We...
Implications of US Military Operations in the southern Caribbean Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (17 October 2025) — As of this writing, U.S. military strikes blowing up six small boats in the southern Caribbean Sea between Venezuela and Trinidad killed nearly 30 people. No evidence has been offered by the Trump administration to the American public or international community to justify these killings. The victims of these summary executions are alleged by the U.S. president to be trafficking...
From Selma to St. George’s: The Transatlantic Currents of Liberation between the U.S. Civil Rights Movement and the Caribbean Gabriel J. Christian, Esq. (11 October 2025) — The struggle for Black freedom is an unbroken conversation across oceans. It is the voice of Africa carried on the trade winds to the Caribbean, reborn in the hymns of plantation fields, and rising again in the marches of Montgomery and Selma. The Caribbean was never a spectator to the U.S. Civil Rights Movement—it...
The Ward Post’s Series profiling Caribbean Diaspora Leadership, Professionalism, Entrepreneurship, and Community Engagement (Second in Series) Written by Ambassador Curtis A. Ward with the cooperation of Venice Mundle Harvey (07 October 2025) — After meeting Venice and later learning about her achievements in the insurance business, her commitment to community leadership and service, guided by the tenets of her religious upbringing — as Jesus said, “What you do for the least of...
No Empty Chairs: The Case for Attending the 2025 Summit of the Americas Sir Ronald Sanders (06 October 2025) — The Dominican Republic (DR) is hosting the 2025 Summit of the Americas – a gathering of the Heads of State and Government of 32 countries of the Western Hemisphere. On September 30, the Government of the DR, publicly stated that Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela will not be invited to the 2025 Summit of the Americas. The Government was careful to explain that its choice is...
Continuity, Change, Dollars, and Disenchantment in Guyana’s 2025 Elections Professor Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith (01 October 2025) —Today—October 1, 2025—marks one month since the lone English-speaking republic in South America held its national and regional elections. In my pre-elections analysis in an earlier TWP, I explained that the then-highly-anticipated elections were destined to be consequential. But, as is shown below, the contestation for power was not only consequential, it was...
Is the UN still beneficial to small countries? Sir Ronald Sanders (27 September 2025) — On September 23, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump used his address to the 80th session of the UN General Assembly to question the Organization’s purpose. He is not alone; leaders worldwide have asked the same question. “The UN has such tremendous potential,” he said, but it is “not even coming close,” and “empty words don’t solve war.” On that point, many would agree. However...
