CARACAS – The government of Venezuela has issued a strong diplomatic rebuke of Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar following statements she made during the 50th Regular Meeting of the Caribbean Community Heads of Government summit. In an official communiqué dated 25 February 2026 and released from Caracas, Venezuelan authorities said they “firmly reject” Persad-Bissessar’s position and criticised her address as a departure from the “integrationist spirit” the regional bloc has upheld for decades.
The Venezuelan government’s statement accused the Trinidadian leader of undermining the principles of unity, cooperation and good neighbourliness that have long guided CARICOM, a regional organisation founded more than 50 years ago with Trinidad and Tobago as a key founding member. The communiqué said other heads of government at the summit reaffirmed their commitment to those shared values during the meeting’s opening session.
In unusually direct language, Venezuela’s government went further, calling Persad-Bissessar’s “rhetorical obsession” with her criticism of Caracas unrepresentative of a national consensus within Trinidad and Tobago. The document suggested that various sectors of Trinidadian society have publicly distanced themselves from her stance. Venezuelan officials also warned that such remarks risk straining bilateral ties and potentially undermining Trinidad and Tobago’s own economic interests, particularly in areas involving strategic cooperation between the two nations.
The diplomatic exchange comes amid a broader backdrop of regional friction over security and geopolitical alignment. At the CARICOM summit in St Kitts and Nevis, Persad-Bissessar criticised the organisation’s silence in the face of what she described as threats from Venezuela, particularly toward Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. Her remarks included support for greater cooperation with the United States on security matters, reflecting a shift toward a more independent foreign policy stance.
Persad-Bissessar’s address sparked debate across the Caribbean, emphasising differing views within CARICOM on how to handle security challenges and external influence — particularly involving the United States and regional stability. Venezuela’s rebuke underscores the heightened diplomatic tensions between Caracas and Port of Spain at a moment when leaders are navigating complex issues of security, economic development and geopolitical alignment in the Caribbean basin.