Akash Samaroo
Former UNC MP and former Trinidad and Tobago Permanent Representative to the United Nations Rodney Charles is warning that the Government could face political and diplomatic fallout if the balance of power shifts in Washington following the November mid-term elections.
Charles, who served as the MP for Naparima, believes the Kamla Persad-Bissessar administration should begin preparing now for that possibility, arguing that the political winds in the United States could change significantly if Democrats make major gains in Congress.
His warning comes as the Government continues to strengthen its relationship with US President Donald Trump’s administration.
Just yesterday, Persad-Bissessar publicly thanked Trump and his administration for reducing Trinidad and Tobago’s tariff rate to 10 per cent following negotiations between Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Minister Sean Sobers and the United States Trade Representative in Washington.
“I want to take a moment to thank President Trump and his team with your good self for all the bargaining that we’ve done,” Persad-Bissessar said.
She also thanked Sobers for representing Trinidad and Tobago in the negotiations, saying the lower tariff meant “less we had to pay”.
The Prime Minister said Trinidad and Tobago’s qualification for the 10 per cent rate would benefit the country’s exporters and economy.
But Charles, in a statement titled “Is TT preparing for a post-Trump world?”, is urging the Government to consider what could happen if Trump’s Republicans suffer significant losses in November.
He said scenario planning was necessary to ensure Trinidad and Tobago is not caught “flat footed”.
“These winds ought to bring a chill to world leaders who have been bending the knee in support of Mr Trump’s agenda,” Charles said.
He pointed to recent polling which he said showed Democrats with advantages on congressional voting preferences, the economy and voter enthusiasm, while Trump faced high disapproval ratings.
“If there is a blue wave as many predict, TT stands to lose if it is not nimble, remains flat footed, and lacks political gravitas,” Charles warned.
His comments come against the backdrop of Persad-Bissessar’s close alignment with Washington on regional security since returning to office last year.
Persad-Bissessar has been one of the Caribbean’s strongest supporters of US kinetic strikes against alleged drug-trafficking vessels in the region. In September 2025, she publicly backed the US military campaign and said she had “no sympathy for traffickers”, later maintaining her support as the strikes continued.
T&T also participated in the US-led Joint Task Force Southern Spear, under which Washington coordinated military operations with Latin American and Caribbean partners against alleged narcotics traffickers. That initiative has since been replaced by Joint Task Force-Western Hemisphere.
The country is also part of the 18-nation Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, known as “Shield of the Americas”, which Trump launched in Florida in March. Persad-Bissessar attended that launch. The initiative seeks to strengthen intelligence sharing and coordinate regional operations against organised crime and drug cartels.
Charles warned that a change in Washington’s political landscape could result in greater scrutiny of some of those operations.
He suggested investigations could be launched into Operation Southern Spear over allegations surrounding extra-judicial killings in Caribbean and Pacific waters, as well as into the US operation in Venezuela which resulted in the removal of Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Persad-Bissessar has maintained that T&T’s military did not participate in the operation in Venezuela.
Charles said T&T should therefore reconsider how it conducts foreign policy, arguing that the Prime Minister should allow greater flexibility rather than personally staking out positions from which the country may later find it difficult to retreat.
He also urged the Government to reassess its approach to the International Criminal Court, Middle East politics and voting at the United Nations, while taking “genuine” steps to repair relations with Caricom and Venezuela.
Without Trump’s protection, TT might become a regional leper, shunned by its neighbours across Latin America and the Caribbean,” Charles warned.
He said foreign policy must ultimately be driven by long-term national interest rather than personalities or political headlines.
“Geopolitics is not about headlines, showing power, and ignoring seismic changes when they occur,” Charles said. “It is about cold, dispassionate calculations of national interest in the short, medium and long terms.”
