US Southern Command admits boots on Haiti ground 'possible'
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According to Gen. Laura Richardson, chief of US Southern Command, the US Souther Command is "prepared".
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Children raise their hands to show police they are not carrying weapons during an anti-gang operation in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on February 29, 2024. (AP)
Going against previous vows of no boots on the ground in Haiti, the US Southern Command acknowledged on Tuesday that US troops might be stationed in the Caribbean nation.
According to Gen. Laura Richardson, chief of US Southern Command, "They could be at the end of the day. We wouldn't discount that at any time."
Richardson was speaking to the Atlantic Council, an organization dubbed "unfriendly" by Russia.
She also stated that the US Southern Command was "prepared" if called upon by the State Department or Pentagon.
This comes as the European Union Foreign Affairs Council has called for the deployment of multinational security forces in Haiti amid the expansion of its armed conflict, Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, stated on Monday.
"We also discussed recent developments in Haiti. We support a viable, inclusive, and sustainable Haiti and a lead political transition. We emphasize the importance of deploying the multinational security support mission authorized by the United Nations Security Council," Borrell said during a council meeting in Brussels.
Amid Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry's visit to Kenya on February 29 to negotiate the deployment of foreign forces to combat organized crime in Haiti, gang violence broke out in downtown Port-au-Prince.
Despite the Prime Minister announcing his resignation on Tuesday, the gangs are aiming to prevent Henry's return to Haiti. Gang violence has led to the storming of the country's largest prison and the release of an undetermined number of inmates.
US to deploy Navy vessels to Haiti
The United States will deploy several naval vessels to Haiti, claiming that this measure is in response to a potential event of mass migration caused by the worsening security situation in the country.
"I have put in a request for increased capability to do exactly that. We are ready if we need to deal with a mass migration," commander of US Southern Command Laura Richardson told Congressman Matt Gaetz last week when asked if the US Navy would assist.
Richardson stated that the US military and other federal agencies conducted a comprehensive review of contingency plans for a large-scale migration event in the region during an exercise at Guantanamo Bay last summer.
When pressed to corroborate allegations that the US plans to put Haitian migrants in Guantanamo Bay on Tuesday, Richardson remained evasive.
