Grenada PM to deliver update on US Radar Deployment Request on October 28

Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell during his weekly Tuesday evening social media interactive programme ‘DMs with the PM’ has cleared the rumours circulating online regarding Grenada’s decision on whether accepting or denying US request to deploy military assets in Grenada. The Prime Minister said that he will be delivering an update to the public during the upcoming sitting in the Parliament.

“I will provide an update to the public in Parliament. When Parliament sits, it will be an opportunity to address the issue then, and so the entire country will have the opportunity to hear from me,” the prime minister said.

PM Dickon Mitchell explained that his anticipated statement to parliament will not be to inform about or deliver a final government’s decision but will focus on delivering an update. This comes as the public awaits the government’s decision on US request, as they have not received a word from the government since the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the request.

The announcement is expected to be made on 28th October, during the sitting of the lower house of parliament. Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell also confirmed that the government is in no hurry to make a decision and will consider the request carefully.

“This request was made since August, and we are now in October. So, if we were in a position to make a decision, it was August, September, October and if we wanted to rush to do, we could have done so,” the Prime Minister stated.

Notably, the government of Grenada has earlier released a statement that the government is committed to continue making the Caribbean as a zone of peace. This was said after US military started targeting drug traffickers across the Caribbean through various strikes.

However, the US military request to deploy radar equipment at the Maurice Bishop International Airport was confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign affairs. Following the public announcement made, CARICOM officials also met to discuss the request, and released a statement following the meeting confirming that the Caribbean is committed to be a zone of peace and to resolve any issues through dialogue and cooperation, however Trinidad and Tobago reserved its position and opposed this decision.

The US request has notably ignited a debate across Caribbean with international observers closely monitoring the development. Now, the public is awaiting an update from the Prime Minister of Grenada which is expected to be made during the upcoming parliament session.