Defence officials finalise National Security Strategy
It sounds like one of those academic exercises that, once completed, will gather dust on a shelf at Price Barracks. But an army as thinly stretched as the Belize Defence Force has little time for frivolities. As News Five’s Kendra Griffith discovered, plans now being formulated at the Biltmore are meant to be followed.
Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett, Commander, Belize Defence Force
?It gives me great pleasure to open this third national security strategy formulation seminar.?
Kendra Griffith, Reporting
According to Brigadier General Lloyd Gillett, the previous two seminars have resulted in the completion of the first three chapters of the National Security Strategy.
Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett
?Chapter one gives us the vision, the national goals, and defines our national interest. Chapter two defines the geo-strategic environment in which we are working, along with the threats. These threats are tiered in order of their gravity to the state of Belize. Chapter three lays out the strategic concepts and capabilities that are required to achieve Vision 2021.?
With the groundwork laid, this week the focus will be on defining a framework for the execution and monitoring of the vision.
But turning those ideas into reality will be no easy feat. The B.D.F. will have to rely on its partners from the police, coast guard, customs, immigration, civil society, and even the Central Bank and Chamber of Commerce to play their role in the project.
Col. Bernard Griffard, Workshop Facilitator
?I?ve just received the edited draft that was the completion of the first two workshops and we?ll use that as a basis for suggesting lead organisations and responsibilities during this workshop, so that we can carry this into execution mode.?
Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett
?Coordinating them is a challenge and we might need to develop new mechanisms for coordination if the ones that are in existence are not working. But there?s also an additional thing that we?ll look at, the resources needed to develop these capabilities that we have identified that we need to address these threats. So getting the resources budgeted is a major challenge to addressing the threats.?
And if anyone knows how to use resources it?s Gillett, who with an army of just under a thousand soldiers, is responsible for such varied tasks as maintaining the integrity of a long and porous border, providing security from external threats, administering aid in times of disaster, and lending support to civil authorities.
Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett
?What you have to do is prioritize, what you have to do is sequence activities. And so prioritization is a main way in which we try and ensure that each threat to our country is adequately addressed and we work in close cooperation with the police and they are very effective in terms of dissuading crime and prosecuting criminals. And so this is what we are trying to do, try and ensure that each agency is coordinated and understands what we are trying to achieve to ensure the security, stability, and prosperity of Belize.?
The competed strategy will be handed over to the National Security Council for approval. Kendra Griffith reporting for News Five.
The seminar ends on Friday and is being facilitated by Colonel Bernard Griffard and Col. Dale Eikmeier of the Centre for Strategic Leadership at the U.S. Army War College. Assisting Belize in the formulation of the national security strategy is the UK’s Ministry of Defence and the U.S. Southern Command.
In related military news, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Taiwan, Air Force General Lee Tien Yu, will be visiting Belize from November ninth through twelfth. General Lee is scheduled to meet with B.D.F. and Defence Ministry officials to explore future cooperation between the military forces of both countries.
