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Washington’s push for military assets in St. George’s sparks sovereignty alarm as Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell remains abroad and Acting PM Lennox Andrew faces a diplomatic tightrope

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By Times Caribbean Political and Security Desk | October 13, 2025

In what regional observers are calling a potential geopolitical turning point for the Eastern Caribbean, a top U.S. military official — Admiral Alvin Halsey, commander of the powerful U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) — is set to visit Grenada this week for high-level talks with top government officials.

According to reliable sources in Washington, the visit is officially framed as part of Washington’s ongoing mission to “strengthen regional security cooperation.” But diplomatic insiders say the agenda carries far more weight — including a controversial request for Grenada to allow the stationing of U.S. military assets on its soil, in what one regional analyst described as “a renewed American chess move in the Southern Caribbean Sea.”

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A Visit Amid Absence and Ambiguity

Admiral Halsey’s visit to Grenada is scheduled for Wednesday, following a stop in Antigua and Barbuda on Tuesday. However, a government source in St. George’s confirmed that Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell — currently on an official visit to Ghana before traveling to Miami — will not be in the country to host the U.S. commander.

In his absence, Finance Minister Lennox Andrew is serving as Acting Prime Minister, but it remains unclear whether he will meet with Admiral Halsey or delegate the encounter to the Minister of National Security.

“The optics of this timing are remarkable,” one Caribbean diplomat told Times Caribbean. “The Americans are pressing Grenada hard while the Prime Minister is out of the country — that’s no coincidence. It’s a test of where St. George’s stands in this growing regional security dilemma.”

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Washington Turns Up the Heat

U.S. interest in Grenada’s strategic location has grown sharply amid heightened tensions in the Southern Caribbean, particularly surrounding Venezuela. Reports suggest that Washington has been urging Caribbean states to “play ball” — diplomatic shorthand for increased alignment with U.S. strategic priorities.

One senior U.S. diplomat in the region, speaking off record during a closed-door session, reportedly said:

“It is time Grenada plays ball.”

That phrase, insiders say, encapsulates Washington’s frustration with small-island hesitation — and possibly its intent to escalate pressure behind the scenes.

The American political magazine Politico recently reported that certain figures within the Trump policy network have not ruled out “kinetic action” — including, shockingly, the possibility of “launching a missile into Venezuela with Nicolás Maduro’s name on it.”

Against this tense backdrop, Grenada has become a symbolic flashpoint: a tiny island whose consent — or resistance — could mark a new era of Caribbean militarization or Caribbean independence.

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Grenada’s Delicate Balancing Act

The Grenadian government has so far played its cards close to its chest. Its only public statement confirms that the U.S. proposal is under consideration, without committing either way.

But Independent MP Peter David, a respected voice in Grenadian foreign affairs and a former Minister of Foreign Affairs himself, issued a sharp warning on Monday:

“Given the current context, it would be both problematic and undesirable for Grenada to accede to the U.S. request to have its military assets stationed in Grenada. Doing so would only exacerbate regional tensions and not lend itself to the cause of peace.”

David urged Grenadians to stand firm on sovereignty and neutrality, echoing a sentiment that runs deep in the national psyche — still haunted by the 1983 U.S. invasion of Grenada under President Ronald Reagan, an event that toppled the revolutionary government of Maurice Bishop.

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Echoes of History: The Shadow of 1983

For Grenadians, the notion of U.S. troops or “assets” returning to their island carries a heavy historical weight. The 1983 intervention — justified by Washington as a move to restore order — left hundreds dead and scarred the nation’s political landscape for generations.

Political historian Dr. Clive Joseph notes:

“Grenada’s geography makes it invaluable. But history makes U.S. presence here incendiary. Any move to base military equipment or personnel on Grenadian soil risks reopening old wounds — and reigniting anti-imperialist sentiment across the region.”

Indeed, regional analysts warn that allowing a U.S. military foothold in Grenada could alienate allies within CARICOM, divide the OECS, and further strain relations with Venezuela and Cuba, two nations that remain deeply sensitive to U.S. encroachment in the Caribbean Basin.

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Patriotism, Principle, and Pressure

With Prime Minister Mitchell abroad, the acting leadership in St. George’s faces a diplomatic test of nerve. The U.S. visit is not just a courtesy call — it is a message wrapped in military uniform.

As MP Peter David framed it:

“This is a time for patriotism and national honor — not division, not partisan sniping. The Grenadian people must rally in defense of sovereignty and dignity.”

The question now is whether Grenada will stand as a principled neutral or bow to the gravitational pull of U.S. influence in an increasingly polarized hemisphere.

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TIMES CARIBBEAN ANALYSIS:

This week’s visit by Admiral Halsey may appear routine — but its implications are anything but. It could signal the rebirth of U.S. hard-power diplomacy in the Caribbean, a region Washington once considered its backyard but which has increasingly looked eastward toward China, Russia, and Africa.

For Grenada, this is a defining moment — one that could determine whether it remains a beacon of sovereignty in the Caribbean Sea or becomes yet another pawn in the geopolitical endgame unfolding between Washington, Caracas, and Beijing.

The world will be watching St. George’s this week — and so will history.