France’s foreign minister criticized “military operations” in the Caribbean at a G7 meeting on Tuesday, as the deployment of a US aircraft carrier strike group escalated an arms buildup in the region.
Speaking to reporters at the start of a Group of Seven gathering in Canada, top French diplomat Jean-Noel Barrot said it was crucial to avoid “instability caused by potential escalations,” after Venezuela warned the US deployments could trigger a full-blown conflict.
“We have observed, with concern, military operations in the Caribbean region because they disregard international law,” Barrot said, without citing specific US actions.
But the comments at the meet near Niagara Falls came after the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, entered an area under control of the US Naval Forces Southern Command, which encompasses Latin America and the Caribbean.
President Donald Trump’s administration is conducting a military campaign in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, deploying naval and air forces for an anti-drugs offensive.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the Trump administration of “fabricating a war” while pursuing a regime change plot in disguise.
Barrot said it was essential for the G7 club of industrialized democracies to “work in concert” to confront the global narcotics trade, noting that more than a million French citizens live in the Caribbean and could be impacted by any potential unrest.
