Hegseth and Guyana’s President Ali sign enhanced defence partnership at the Pentagon

U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Guyana’s President Mohamed Irfaan Ali signed a Joint Declaration for an Enhanced Defense Partnership at the Pentagon on Wednesday, October 21. The Department of War called it a landmark agreement. Its full terms have not been published, and no timeline for implementation has been given.

What the two governments say

According to a statement from the Guyanese President’s Office, the declaration builds on a multi-decade partnership and is critical to the defence of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The statement says the U.S. Department of War will provide sustained defence expertise, multidomain training and combined exercises with the Guyana Defence Force, and that cooperation will strengthen Guyana’s air-domain awareness, meaning its ability to monitor and respond to threats in and around its territory.

The presidency also says the document aligns the two countries in confronting narco-terrorist organisations and drug trafficking, building on their roles in the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition and the Shield of the Americas. It describes the declaration as the latest step in a partnership that spans security, energy, trade and investment.

Hegseth’s remarks

In a Department of War statement, Hegseth told Ali that his leadership across the region with key Caribbean partners had been indispensable. He named narco-terrorism and military influence from outside the Western Hemisphere as shared challenges, and said that by applying what he called President Donald Trump’s corollary to the Monroe Doctrine the two nations would push back on those threats. “We’ve only just begun on that project,” he said. Hegseth said the United States will intensify combined training in multidomain operations and in air interdiction.

Context

Guyana, which borders Venezuela, has long faced a dispute with its western neighbour over the Essequibo region, a tension Geopolitiki examined in On the brink of conflict: Venezuela’s military buildup near Guyana border challenges peace. The new declaration is also consistent with Washington’s stated turn toward the Western Hemisphere, set out by Hegseth in Hegseth says US forces in Europe will shift to America or the Western Hemisphere.

The accounts available so far come from the two governments’ own statements. Details such as troop numbers, funding, the location of any exercises or the shape of the air-surveillance cooperation have not been made public.