14th Annual Border Commanders Meeting Held in Corozal

The fourteenth annual Border Commanders Meeting between the militaries of Belize and Mexico was hosted in Corozal. Headed by Rear Admiral Elton Bennett, the Commandant of the Belize Coast Guard, the three-day meeting was focused on strategic level discussions and operational planning. Its aim was to develop a framework to address security challenges faced by both countries in the border regions. Today, Bennett spoke to News Five via Zoom saying that the meeting was a success because of agreements made on intelligence development and information sharing for effective cross-border operations in national airspace and sea spaces.

Elton Bennett

Rear Admiral Elton Bennett, Commandant, Belize Coast Guard

“The intent was to establish a framework for the military forces of both Mexico and Belize to chart a way forward for the next year. And what we would normally do is get together during the year to establish and create a strategy that would be able to coordinate our efforts on both sides of the border. You have to understand and appreciate that this is very huge in magnitude. It includes the Belize Defense Force and the Belize Coast Guard on our part and from the Mexican part it includes the Mexican Army, Navy and Air Forces, who come to the table and we discuss those challenges that we face together as a country and we discuss opportunities as well that may exist for our security forces and we get to exchange information and really create an operational design that will steer us into the next twelve months.”