October 12, 2025
ST. GEORGE’S, GRENADA — Grenada’s government has confirmed that the United States has formally requested permission to install radar equipment and deploy technical personnel at the Maurice Bishop International Airport—barely 100 miles from Venezuela’s northern coast. The move, framed by Washington as a “temporary” measure, comes amid escalating U.S. military activity in the Caribbean and growing fears of an imminent confrontation with the Maduro government.
While Grenadian officials insist the proposal is under “careful review,” regional leaders and security analysts warn the request could fracture CARICOM unity and violate the Caribbean’s long-standing commitment to being a “Zone of Peace”. Critics argue that the radar installation is less about surveillance and more about staging—a strategic foothold in a region already bracing for the fallout of U.S. aggression.
“This isn’t just about radar. It’s about sovereignty, memory, and the militarisation of diplomacy,” said one regional analyst, pointing to the chilling parallels with Grenada’s past.
In 1983, the United States invaded Grenada under the banner of “Operation Urgent Fury” following a bloody coup that saw Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and several cabinet members assassinated by hardliners within his own revolutionary government. The invasion, condemned by the United Nations but celebrated in Washington, left deep scars on the island’s political psyche and remains a flashpoint in Caribbean-American relations.
Now, four decades later, the spectre of foreign boots on Grenadian soil has returned—this time not with helicopters, but with radar towers and diplomatic euphemisms.
Adding fuel to the fire, the U.S. State Department recently imposed visa restrictions on Grenadian officials and their immediate family members, citing their alleged complicity in Cuba’s coercive overseas medical missions. The move has been interpreted by some as a pressure tactic—tightening the screws on Grenada’s leadership as Washington seeks strategic compliance.
Venezuela, backed by China and Russia, has called an emergency session of the UN Security Council to halt what it describes as “U.S. military escalation in the Caribbean”. Meanwhile, Grenadians are left to reckon with a familiar question: when the superpowers flex, who gets crushed in the middle?
