British High Commissioner to Guyana Greg Quinn says that his Government’s plans to build a military base in the Caribbean is part of its demonstration that they are a “global player” and are determined to remaining a global player going forward but there has been no request for one here in Guyana.
Quinn was questioned last evening on reports of the UK Government mulling constructing military bases in the Caribbean, including Guyana.
UK Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson had indicated that London was planning on making the move during a recent interview.
When questioned about the plan, Quinn said, “I think the Secretary of Defence was very clear when he talked about increasing Britain’s footprint. As we leave the European Union in particular, we need to project a sort of confident and clear British presence. And we have a very close relationship obviously with South East Asia and the Caribbean. We have had a ship stationed in the Caribbean for a long time doing hurricane relief in particular. I think this is part of this broader UK demonstration that we are a global player and we are determined to remain a global player going forward.”
However, with respect to Guyana, he noted that he has not been told about one being proposed here and all that he could say is that there is a proposal for one in the Caribbean somewhere, “but as I stand here now, there’s been no specific request to me to look into the possibility about a base here in Guyana.”
