The government sees “no acute threat” to the Antilles as a result of the increasing tension between the US and Venezuela. This was announced by outgoing Minister of Foreign Affairs David van Weel (VVD) during consultations with the parliamentary standing committee on Foreign Affairs.
The government is closely monitoring the situation in the Caribbean, Van Weel said, but the government concludes that even in the event of an American attack on Venezuela, there is no immediate danger to Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, islands just off the coast of the South American country.
A possible attack on the islands would not come from the US, but from Caracas, Van Weel stated. However, the Maduro government seems to want to do everything it can to prevent “further escalation.” For example, the Venezuelan dictator still maintains contact with Washington and the American oil company Chevron is still active in the Venezuelan oil fields.
Alleged drug shipments
In recent months, the Trump administration has increased pressure on Venezuela and openly threatened military intervention. According to Washington, drug shipments from Venezuela are a threat to national security. Since September, US forces have been carrying out attacks on suspected drug shipments overseas.
At least 87 people have been killed in these bombings so far. Volker Türk, High Representative for Human Rights at the UN, said the attacks violate international law. Washington has also increased its military presence in the area as part of Operation ‘Southern Spear’ and sent the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford towards Venezuela.
The House of Representatives had many questions on Tuesday evening about the killing of alleged drug smugglers without any form of trial. Kati Piri (GroenLinks-Pvda) asked Van Weel to condemn the attacks, but the outgoing Minister of Foreign Affairs did not want to do so, although he admitted that the American government has not properly substantiated why the attacks should fall under the right to self-defense: “in our opinion, this cannot withstand the test of a judge.”
No Antillean airports used
The US operates from airfields in both Curaçao and Bonaire for counter-narcotics operations, with unarmed aircraft. However, according to Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans, the US did not use these airfields in its attacks. Brekelmans did not want to comment on the question of what intelligence has been shared with the US about drug transports: “We do not make any statements about that.”
The Netherlands has stationed a patrol ship on a permanent basis in the Caribbean, which is responsible for, among other things, apprehending drug smugglers at sea. Last Friday, Defense announced that the supply ship Zr. Ms. Den Helder stays in the area longer. However, Minister Brekelmans made it clear that Defense does not want to expand its military presence too ostentatiously, to prevent it from becoming a party to a possible conflict. The Netherlands has informed the US that it will under no circumstances participate in military operations against Venezuela.
The biggest problem for the Antilles seems to be the refugee flows that can arise in the event of a conflict. According to Minister Van Weel, most Venezuelans will flee overland to neighboring countries. However, if refugees are able to cross to the islands, the Netherlands will have to step in, Van Weel said. There are already thousands of Venezuelan refugees living in Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao.
During the Foreign Affairs Committee debate, a lot of attention was paid to the concerns of the Antilleans, many of whom, according to committee chairman Don Ceder (Christian Union), followed the livestream of the debate in the House of Representatives. Both ministers promised to pay more attention to this. Minister Brekelmans wanted to guard against overly strong words: “we should not sow unnecessary panic.”
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