STATEMENT BY H.E. GLENDA MOREAN-PHILLIP, AMBASSADOR OF THE REPUBLIC OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ON THE OCCASION OF THE PRESENTATION OF HER LETTER OF CREDENCE
June 6th 2008

Mr President,

It is indeed an honour and a privilege for me to present to you today the Letter of Recall of my predecessor, Her Excellency Marina Annette Valère, and the Letter of Credence from my President accrediting me as Ambassador of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to the United States of America.

I bring the best wishes of the Government and People of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to you, Mr President, and to the Government and People of the United States of America.

During my tenure here I am resolved to build on the solid foundation of my predecessors to reinforce the strong bonds of friendship and cooperation which our countries enjoy.

In recent years, the level of bilateral engagement has increased to the mutual benefit of both countries.  The Government of Trinidad and Tobago is particularly pleased at the collaboration and technical assistance provided in several areas but I must specifically mention energy and security, two areas for which Prime Minister Patrick Manning has portfolio responsibility within the sub-regional grouping of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).  In this regard, Trinidad and Tobago appreciates the technical assistance given by the United States to the CARICOM region for the staging in the Caribbean of Cricket World Cup 2007, the third largest sporting event internationally, for which unprecedented security initiatives were successfully implemented.

The United States also responded swiftly to the request from Trinidad and Tobago to assist in our country’s energy security initiatives through an assessment of the critical infrastructure of our energy sector, a sector which has provided, on average, some 68% of the liquefied natural gas requirements of the United States in the last six years and approximately 69% and 51% respectively of ammonia and methanol.
We were pleased to welcome to our shores the distinguished Secretary for Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, in the lead up to Cricket World Cup 2007 and we had a fruitful visit this month by the Secretary of Energy, Samuel Bodman, who formally presented the report “Trinidad and Tobago LNG Vulnerability Assessment”.  In addition to the Department of Energy, contributions to this report came from the US Departments of Homeland Security, State, Defense and the US Coast Guard.  Indeed, my Government is also heartened to learn of the interest of the Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates, in visiting Trinidad and Tobago.

The value of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in addressing the borderless threats facing our region, which you have referred to as the US’ Third Border, cannot be understated.  Trinidad and Tobago has been proactive in implementing action geared at reducing and eliminating narco-trafficking and the related illegal trafficking of small arms and weapons which have deleterious effects on both our societies and economies.  There is a limit, however, to our technical and resource capabilities in combating this scourge and so, we look forward to continued collaboration with the US on this area for our mutual benefit.  A significant opportunity will be provided at the upcoming Caribbean Military Commanders Meeting to be hosted by Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of CARICOM from June 12 to 13, 2008. 

Mr President, last year’s historic Conference on the Caribbean during which you met with CARICOM Heads of State and Government signalled another step towards strengthening the spirit of cooperation and collaboration between us.  Your stated commitment to work with the US Congress to renew and expand the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) remains of primary importance for Trinidad and Tobago and CARICOM, as a whole, and we look forward to all relevant action being taken before the CBTPA expires at the end of September this year.

Before closing, I wish to register my country’s honour to be the host of the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain next April under the theme “Securing Our Citizens’ Future by Promoting Human Prosperity, Energy Security and Environmental Sustainability”.  The support of the United States throughout this process has been invaluable and we are convinced that the preparatory process has laid the groundwork for a successful meeting of the hemisphere’s leaders.

It now gives me great pleasure, Mr President, to present my Letter of Credence to you, and to assure you of my resolve to strengthen the warm relations between our countries and to deepen even more the linkages between our peoples.  I look forward to your cooperation and that of the Government of the United States in these pursuits.