(Ottawa) The Dominican Republic would never have given Canada permission to set up an office on its territory with a mandate to support the Haitian National Police, according to its Dominican Minister of External Affairs – an assertion that the Canadian government refutes without hesitation .
The Minister of External Affairs in Santo Domingo, Roberto Álvarez, made this accusation in a tweet published Friday morning, the day after an announcement made by his Canadian counterpart, Mélanie Joly, which he attended virtually.
“The Dominican government confirms that it has not discussed, agreed or granted any authorization for the installation on our territory of a coordination office in support of the National Police of Haiti, as indicated by the information of ‘a Canadian media,’ he wrote in Spanish.
Minister Joly announced the upcoming opening of the International Assistance Coordination Office during the Haiti 2023 Ministerial Meeting on Thursday morning. As she has often said, the head of Canadian diplomacy has expressed the wish to develop solutions “by and for Haitians”.
“We want this coordination center to be operational this summer in the Dominican Republic,” she said at the opening of the meeting, thanking ” [s]on dear colleague Roberto for supporting us and working with us”.
In a statement sent on Friday, Global Affairs Canada points out that “discussions between partners to make this work operational have been taking place for several weeks. […]including those aimed at finalizing a location that will support the work of the group in geographical proximity to Haiti”.
Through the Canadian-led Joint Coordination Cell, “more than 20 countries and international organizations will work together to help Haitians and the Haitian National Police meet the country’s security needs,” the ministry added.
“Our only interest is to help the Haitians,” assured a Canadian government source.
The Dominican political context is perhaps no stranger to the exit of Minister Álvarez.
The day before, the opposing party’s presidential candidate, Abel Martínez Durán, reacted very negatively to Ottawa’s plan. “We reject Canada’s intention to open offices in the Dominican Republic to supposedly coordinate aid to the neighboring country. Let them settle them in Haiti! he tweeted.
Canada has been asked many times, including by the United States, to lead a multinational intervention mission to restore order in the Caribbean country plunged into chaos for months. However, he always resisted.