Pulse of the Caribbean

#126 Caribbean News Round Up Episode 2 Week of October 13

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Today’s report features U.S.–Caribbean security talks, a U.S. war powers fight over maritime strikes, a looming IMO vote on net‑zero shipping, record climate displacement, Sargassum-to-bioproduct innovation, and SpaceX’s Bahamas risk debates. We connect the policy dots and point to where island resilience, accountability, and opportunity meet. Here are some of the stories making Caribbean headlines.

  • US SouthComm Admiral meets with Antigua and Grenada Prime Ministers on security cooperation 
  • US Senate Republicans blocked attempt to limit President Trump's lethal military strikes on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean
  • The US threatens visa restrictions and sanctions against governments, including those in the Caribbean vote for Net‑Zero shipping framework
  • The International Organization for Migration  will urge prioritizing disaster and climate risk mitigation in global financial discussions at COP30
  • Punta Cana Foundation in the Dominican Republic inks deal with Origin by Ocean for bio-based products with Sargassum
  • Bahamas evaluates SpaceX Falcon 9 landings and risks 

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Send news releases to news@pulseofthecaribbean.com. For Pulse of the Caribbean marketplace feature opportunities email biz@pulseofthecaribbean.com.

SPEAKER_01:

This podcast is brought to you by Diamond Key Marina, Yospendike, British Virgin Islands, home of Foxy's taboo and gateway to the bubbly pool, a natural jacuzzi and hidden gem. Welcome to the Pulse of the Caribbean News Roundup, episode two for the week of October 13th. Here's a look at what's making Caribbean headlines. We set a report today in Antigua and Barbuda. U.S. Navy Admiral Alvin Holsley, Commander of U.S. Southern Command Southcom, will visit Antigua and Barbuda and Grenada starting today, October 14th to 15th, to meet with Prime Ministers Gaston Brown and Dickon Mitchell. Admiral Holsey, first visit to boat nations since taking over the Southern Command last November, is an opportunity to improve security cooperation with Caribbean partners. In addition to meeting with boat prime ministers, the Admiral will meet with Antigua and Barbuda's Chief of Defense, Staff Brigadier Delbert Benjamin, and Royal Grenada Police Force Acting Commissioner Randy Connott. Long-standing security cooperation with boat nations and Eastern Caribbean issues such as transnational organized crime, illegal trafficking, and border security will be discussed. The U.S. remains committed to working with Eastern Caribbean partners like Grenada and Antiguan Barbuda to promote regional security and stability. In other news, the United States Senate Republicans blocked U.S. Senate Democrats' attempt to limit President Donald Trump's lethal military strikes on suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean Sea last week, preserving the administration's aggressive counter-narcotics campaign amid international criticism. The 1973 War Powers Resolution procedural vote failed 51 to 48 on primarily party lines. The bill, co-sponsored by Senators Tim Kane, Democrat of Virginia, and Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, would bar the U.S. President from launching hostilities against drug smugglers without congressional authorization. The resolution's failure empowers the U.S. White House to operate with limited congressional oversight and is the newest flashpoint in the presidential war power debate. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the strikes targeted actions against imminent threats, calling the vessels traffickers of poison headed to the United States. The Pentagon called the effort a non-international armed conflict against Trend de Aragua, a foreign terrorist organization. Our next stop is the International Maritime Organization. The U.S. has warned governments, including those in the Caribbean, about a vote later this month on International Maritime Organization's net zero shipping framework to reduce maritime emissions. On Friday, the U.S. threatened visa sanctions and sanctions against states who vote for a UN agency plan to decrease ocean transport greenhouse gas emissions. The Marine Environmental Protection Committee will pass the April 2025 bill in the October 2025 during its scheduled October 17th meeting. The International Maritime Organization said 108 members can vote, including 10 from CARICOM, the Caribbean community, and it will take effect in 2028 if ratified. U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that the U.S. will not accept any international environmental pact that unfairly costs the United States or undermines Americans' interests that raises expenses for its citizens, energy suppliers, maritime firms, and their customers or tourists. The net zero shipping framework wants to minimize international shipping greenhouse gas emissions to meet the 2025 net zero target. Under the plan, vessel operators must disclose greenhouse gas levels annually. Vessels that violate emissions restrictions will pay costs, while those utilizing cleaner fuels would earn incentives. It is reported that the price disparity between fossil fuels and green fuels is three to four times higher. Our next stop is the International Organization for Migration. The International Organization for Migration warns that deteriorating climate impacts are causing unprecedented displacement worldwide and calls for greater global investment in catastrophe risk reduction and resilience building. According to the International Organization for Migration in a news release, Hurricane Barrel's devastation in Union Islands, St. Vincent and the Grenadines highlights the need to build and resilience before calamities. Nearly 46 million people were displaced by disasters in 2024, a record. The agency states that catastrophe prevention is severely underfunded, with most governments allocating less than 1% of their budgets to risk reduction. This year's International Day for Disaster Reduction promotes fund resilience, not disaster, to replace costly emergency responses with proactive prevention and preparedness. According to the International Organization for Migration, governments, donors, and the private sector should increase disaster-related displacement reduction and vulnerable community strengthening initiatives. And this includes climate financing initiatives that include human mobility to assess people to adapt, relocate safely, and rebuild after disasters. The International Organization for Migration will urge for disaster and climate risk mitigation to be prioritized in global financial discussions at COP30. Next up, Punta Cana Foundation and the Dominican Republic Inc. deal for bio-based products with sarcasm after this. Email bizbiz at pulse of the Caribbean.com. Get your ads in front of our ever-expanding Caribbean and diaspora community. Contact us at bizbiz at pulsofthecaribbean.com. Engage in networking and advertising with Pulse of the Caribbean. This is the Pulse of the Caribbean News Roundup Episode 2 for the week of October 13th. Punta Cana Foundation and Origin by Sea inked a contract to establish a pretreatment terminal and create a sustainable Sargasm supply chain. This project intends to turn the Caribbean's vast Sargasm influx into profitable bio-based products. Origin by Ocean will use the collected Sargasm in its finished biorefinery to make eco-friendly cosmetics, food, and textile materials. Using its harvesting and management experience, the Punta Cana Foundation will supply up to 4,000 tons of Sargasm yearly by 2027 to 2028. Both parties stress that the project encourages a circular economy and local economic growth. They will also investigate the possibility of creating biorefinery in the Dominican Republic to promote sustainable innovation. Origin by Ocean, a Finnish biotech company founded in 2019, developed solutions to turn invasive algae into chemical industry resources. And here's our final note. As they seek approval for Falcon 9 rocket landings in the Bahamas after a SpaceX starship rocket detonated earlier this year. SpaceX officials addressed safety concerns from concerned residents in the Bahamas last week. Sheila McCorkle, vice president of SpaceX Starship Legal and Regulatory, acknowledged public apprehension but said the rocket's is reliable at a town hall meeting to discuss SpaceX's plan to land another Falcon 9 booster on a drone ship in the Eczema. On March 6th, a rocket launch from Boca Chica, Texas, exploded, depositing debris across the Bahamas and sparking environmental concerns. Debris covered ragged and crooked island. The Bahamian government said that SpaceX cleaned up and paid for the debris cleanup across the Bahamas. The government signed a deal to allow SpaceX to land its Falcon 9 first stage booster on its drone ship in Bahamian waters. The first Falcon 9 first stage booster landed in Eczema Sound in February. Nineteen SpaceX landings have been postponed until the Bahamas Department of Environmental Planning and Protection approved the program's risk assessment. Last week's town hall gathering included both in-person and virtual attendance for New Providence and Ulethera residents to dialogue with SpaceX. This podcast has been brought to you by Diamond Key Marina, Yosmondike, British Virgin Islands, home of Foxy's Taboo and Gateway to the Bubbly Pool, a natural jacuzzi and hidden gem. Have news and information you'd like to share with us, send news releases to news at pulsofthecaribbean.com. This has been your Pulse of the Caribbean News Roundup, Episode 2 for the week of October 13th. Here's a special greeting go now to our listeners in St. Lucia and Tigambarbuda, New York, Florida, and Netherlands. Thanks for listening and do spread the word and share our podcast with others across the region and the diaspora. I'm Keisha Blyden. See you next time.

SPEAKER_02:

For more Caribbean news stories and information, visit us online at pulsofthecaribbean.com. If you found value in this podcast, be sure to like and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. And thank you in advance for choosing Pulse of the Caribbean Caribbean News Roundup as your source for Caribbean centered news.