US to deploy Navy vessels to Haiti, claims potential 'mass migration'
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The US Southern Command chief claims that the military and federal agencies worked out contingency plans in anticipation of potential mass migrations from Haiti.
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An MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft prepares to land on the amphibious transport dock ship Arlington to deliver supplies in support of the ship’s mission to Haiti, August 18, 2021 (US Navy)
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," US Southern Command Commander Laura Richardson told Congressman Matt Gaetz on Tuesday when asked if the US Navy would assist.
The Commander 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.
Read more: How the US continues to orchestrate chaos in Haiti: UnHerd
On February 29, there was an outbreak of gang violence in downtown Port-au-Prince while the country's Prime Minister Ariel Henry was in Kenya discussing the deployment of foreign forces in Haiti to combat organized crime.
The US began the procedure of airlifting its embassy staff out of Haiti last Sunday, citing the growing gang violence.
Forces deployment on track
On Sunday, the Miami Herald revealed that US Marines were deployed to the capital Port-au-Prince under the pretext of embassy security and to help evacuate non-essential staff.
The US special envoy to Haiti, Daniel Foote, said that restoring order to the country would require around 5,000 and 10,000 police officers and be led by a major economy with experience in police capacity building, like the US, Canada, UK, France, or another EU country.
Kenyan President William Ruto told US State Secretary Anthony Blinken on Wednesday that his country is prepared to lead a multinational force to be deployed in Haiti once the Carribean country establishes a presidential council.
Ruto's comments came just one day after conditioned the launching of the UN-back mission to Haiti forming a presidential council to ensure a political transition of power.
During his Nairobi visit, Henry, who was expected to step down last month, found himself confronted by gangs orchestrating a coordinated assault, demanding that he step down from his position.
The Prime Minister later declared his intentions to resign from his position, paving the way for a likely deployment of the UN-backed forces in Haiti soon.
