The government of Antigua and Barbuda has disclosed that it has deployed armed forces to Saint Lucia as that island battles against its recent crime wave.
In a statement, the Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force said it sent an eight-member continent to aid in the Regional Security System’s (RSS) operations in Saint Lucia.
According to the statement, the Defence Force said the deployment is strictly focused on providing support to the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force in response to the recent upsurge in violence.
The eight-member team travelled via ABDF’s aircraft ALPHA1, while a seven-member team will deploy from the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda via the RSS Airwing.
Reports have it that this is the second RSS deployment, rotating the first deployed contingent, and it is anticipated to last a total of three weeks.
Recall that recently, the Government of Grenada expressed regret over the upsurge in gang violence that is occurring in St Lucia.
Grenada said the gang violence, which has claimed seven lives in the southern town of Vieux Fort recently, has caused unnecessary loss of life and emotional distress to families and communities and has also disrupted the education of children and business activity in affected areas.
Prime Minister, Dickon Mitchell, who is the Chairman of the Regional Security System (RSS), responded favourably to a request from Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister, Philip Pierre, for the RSS to support the Royal Police Force of Saint Lucia.
Mitchell said “The Caribbean region is proudly a zone of peace – a designation that we cannot take for granted, especially given current global tensions”.
