Photo: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets the Guyanese President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali. Source: U.S. Dept.
The United States is Guyana’s most important partner. The United States remains the dominant power in the Western Hemisphere and the dominant force in the world. It is this influence, the investment opportunity from US companies, and the institutional knowledge and expertise it houses that can help Guyana achieve its national and regional ambitions. Forging and strengthening this relationship will be critical to Guyana’s future, giving the country a powerful alliance while providing a window that will allow it to use influence in US policy in the wider Caribbean when needed.
More than in previous decades, Guyana is in a unique position in its relations with the United States, commanding attention from the latter due to its emergence as an oil and gas producer. Guyana’s economic growth and its role as a regional leader in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is increasing its relationship with the United States. While the asymmetry between the two remains large, Guyana is closing the gap. The US policy towards the Caribbean, or to CARICOM specifically, should now include Guyana, especially since the US regional lens has changed since President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
Recently, the United States has emphasized traditional security concerns in the Caribbean, focusing on addressing climate change and energy security. And since Russia invaded Ukraine, which has seen food prices rise, food security has been added to this list. In each area, Guyana commands attention, and the United States cannot achieve its goals in the region without adequate participation from Guyana.
This is one of the reasons why Guyana is the joint chairman of the United States-Caribbean committee in charge of food security — the result of last month’s Summit of the Americas — noting the great role the country is playing in reducing the cost of buying food for the CAICOM 25 by 25 program. And on energy and climate change, Guyana’s long-term conservation of its forests and the future work that the country will do to help strengthen energy security for CARICOM members will make Guyana a priority in U.S. policy. to the community for the foreseeable future.
However, a few challenges stand in Guyana’s way. Despite its unprecedented economic growth, Guyana remains a minor factor in U.S. foreign policy. Currently, political and economic problems are prevalent in America, where the backsliding of democracy is increasing and the CCIDID-19 epidemic has exacerbated the economic problems. In many ways, Guyana’s political stability since 2020 – relative to its neighbors – and its growing economy have allowed US policymakers to focus on the country. Further, current U.S. foreign policy You are ambivalent about Guyana’s oil and gas position. President Biden and his leadership have announced addressing climate change as a key foreign policy priority, keeping Guyana safe.
Going to strengthen Guyana’s relationship with the United States?
Despite some concerns, there are opportunities for Guyana to strengthen its relationship with the United States. U.S.-Guyana relations are diverse, characterized by economic, political, security, and cultural ties, as well as a powerful diaspora located in major cities in New York, Florida, California, and Texas. So, to promote and strengthen the US-Guyana relationship, the country must go regional, working often with the United States at the grassroots level.
Doing so means devaluing relations with the U.S. government. and working closely with cities, states, corporations, and educational institutions in the United States. At the federal level, governance can affect policy implementation and projections, while periodic changes every four or eight years in the highest US government, such as in the White House and the State Department, can significantly change the agenda, goals, and objectives for Guyana. and CARICOM. At the local level, the US-Guyana relationship could see a shift and create a greater depth to the relationship.
First, Guyana can increase economic ties with cities and regions in the United States, especially those with a large number of members of the diaspora. As the economy grows, these cities can become new and stronger destinations for Guyana’s products and services. These places, especially among members of the diaspora, can become markets for eco-tourism and – according to the initiative of President Ali diaspora – continue to attract more money and skills to Guyana.
Second, institutions, such as the University of Guyana and the new oil and gas institutions expected to come online in the near future, will have a large pool of potential partners to choose from, especially in non-traditional areas. Guyana can look beyond the United States to continue and initiate cooperation in the field of oil and gas, of course, but also in areas related to climate change, security cooperation, cultural exchange, and financial services, among others.
Finally, going local can help Guyana ensure continuity and longevity to policy initiatives from the United States by establishing a strong relationship with the US Congress. Some members remain in office for decades, building up more power among their colleagues each year, which also means that changes that occur frequently in the federal government rarely work in parliament. Working with these members of Congress and various committees related to foreign policy, financial affairs, and energy is also a good opportunity for Guyana to raise issues of national interest that rarely reach senior officials.
Strengthening relations with the United States will be important to the development of Guyana and its interests in the short and long term. One way to do this is to go local and deepen U.S.-Guyanese relations in the areas of economics, education, and politics, creating greater strength in a relationship that will likely be very important to Guyana in the coming decades.
Wazim Mowla, a Guyanese American, is the deputy director of the Caribbean Initiative at the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center of the Atlantic Council, and a non-resident scholar at Florida International University’s Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy.
