U.S. Cancels Visas, Sends Coast Guard Ship to Patrol Waters off Haiti’s Capital

By Jacqueline Charles, Michael Wilner

     The United States has sent a major Coast Guard vessel to patrol the waters near Port-au-Prince in a “sign of resolve” with the Haitian government as gang violence continues to grip the nation, and will impose new visa restrictions on Haitians involved in gang activity, the Biden administration said.

     But senior administration officials said it was “premature” to discuss a potential U.S. troop presence in the country, despite a Haitian government request that international forces intervene to help break a gang blockade of the country’s largest fuel terminal, and provide assistance to contain a growing cholera outbreak.

     “I think it’s premature to start thinking whether the United States is going to have a physical presence inside of Haiti,” one senior administration official said.

     Two officials said that additional security and humanitarian assistance would soon be delivered to the Caribbean nation, including bleach, cholera kits and oral re-hydration salts needed to help stem an outbreak of cholera. But it remained unclear how that aid would move through the streets of Haiti’s capital, where gangs and angry protesters demanding the resignation of the prime minister have blocked roads, and the distribution of fuel has been disrupted now going on several weeks.

     In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the new actions were taken “as Haiti faces a deadly resurgence of cholera, malign actors continue to fund and foment violence, as well as block the supply of fuel and humanitarian access for life-saving assistance.”

     “Right now, our staff are on the ground in Haiti, working alongside Haitian health workers and NGOs to respond to the cholera outbreak and deliver care to those who need it,” Blinken said. “We will accelerate the delivery of additional humanitarian relief to the people of Haiti. We are also working to increase and deploy in the coming days security assistance to the Haitian National Police to strengthen their capacity to counter gangs and re-establish a stable security environment under the rule of law.”

     Assistant Secretary of State Brian A. Nichols recently flew to Port-au-Prince with a U.S. delegation that includes Defense Department and Southern Command officials. They will meet with Prime Minister Ariel Henry, along with members of Haiti’s private sector and a civil-society coalition known as the Montana Group that is seeking to lead a two-year transition in Haiti. The Montana Group has publicly come out in opposition to foreign intervention in Haiti, and accused Henry of issuing the request to remain in power.

     Haiti’s latest crisis was ignited last month when the government announced a hike in fuel prices to reduce $400 million in subsidies as part of a reform package that also seeks to collect $600 million in undeclared customs duties. Both Haiti and other governments have said that economic interests upset by the decisions are responsible for the chaos in the streets.

     “There are often political and economic actors that are linked to the gangs,” the senior administration official said.

     The administration is looking at imposing sanctions on individuals in the near future, in addition to the visa restrictions announced, the official said. “We’re going to be exploring other measures to make sure that we are holding those that are preventing the delivery of humanitarian assistance and risking the security of Haitian people.”

     The United States is also preparing to introduce a resolution at the United Nations Security Council that would create a structure for international sanctions on individuals involved in gang activity.

     And “as an additional sign of resolve and support for the people of Haiti, the U.S. Coast Guard has deployed one of its major cutters to patrol offshore Port-au-Prince, Haiti, at the request of the Government of Haiti and in close coordination with the Department of State,” a National Security Council official said.

     Coast Guard ships often coordinate with their Haitian counterparts further off shore to the northwest of the country to curb the migration flow of Haitians seek to come to the United States.

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Photo caption: The United States has sent a major Coast Guard vessel to patrol the waters near Port-au-Prince in a “sign of resolve” with the Haitian government