International

‘Black gold’ for Guyana and Suriname, a blessing or curse?

Photo: Patrick Fort / AFP

AFP | Patrick Fort

Emerging as potential oil powers while the world seeks to wean itself off planet-warming fossil fuels, poverty-stricken South American neighbors Guyana and Suriname say they have to cash in while they can.

The former Dutch colonies are among the world’s most tree-covered countries, hosts to the so-called forest “lungs” that sequester massive amounts of planet-warming carbon dioxide.

Their economies and populations small, the countries have traditionally emitted little CO2 or other greenhouse gasses from fossil fuel use — in fact Suriname is one of only three carbon-negative countries in the world and Guyana claims carbon neutrality.

But some fear this could change with the recent discovery of rich offshore oil deposits in an area known as the Guyana-Suriname Basin.

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Guyana, a country of 800,000 people, was recently found to have proven reserves of at least 10 billion barrels of oil, likely much more according to experts.

This makes it the country with the highest reserves per capita in the world — which consumes 99.4 million barrels of oil per day.

Early assessments suggest the reserves of Suriname, a country of 600,000 people, may not be far behind.

“It will be hard to remain carbon neutral as a country (involved in the) petroleum sector,” economist Steven Debipersad of the Anton de Kom University in Suriname’s capital Paramaribo, told AFP.

The projected $10 billion Suriname stands to make in the next 10 to 20 years, will likely bring economic growth at the cost of the environment, he said.

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The country’s GDP today is about $3 billion.

Hungry ‘every day’

Their presidents insist Guyana and Suriname cannot be expected to turn their backs on a chance to fill their countries’ coffers and raise the quality of life for their people.

The countries are among the poorest in South America, with vast swathes of their populations living without electricity, clean water or access to adequate health services.

In a Paramaribo ghetto named Texas, dirty sewer water flows among dilapidated wooden homes.

Resident Edison Poekitie, a 23-year-old musician, scrapes by on no more than $50 a week. Does he go hungry?

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“Every day!” he told AFP. “It’s hard out here, really hard.”

The community, he added, needs “water pipes, cables, new roads without potholes, schools, better houses, playgrounds…”

Poekitie said he hoped the government would spend the oil money “wisely,” a sentiment echoed by 45-year-old food truck owner Brian Braithwaite in a poor neighborhood of the Guyanese capital Georgetown.

“Hopefully they do something so that… people (who) live on the street can do better,” Braithwaite said.

‘Oil curse’

Both presidents have vowed to make judicious use of their windfall petroleum profits, though some are worried that will undercut the sovereign wealth funds set up to guard some money for future generations.

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“We are quite aware of the oil curse,” Suriname President Chan Santokhi told AFP, alluding to neighbor Venezuela and other resource-rich countries such as Angola and Algeria that were unable to turn oil wealth into social and economic progress.

“We… should also get the opportunity to benefit from the production of oil and gas and its income” to address a biting economic crisis “and help our people to have better lives,” he insisted.

For his part, Guyanese President Mohamed Irfaan Ali wants to use the oil income to “create wealth for now, and future generations.”

Both speak of using the money to diversify their economies with investments in agriculture, tourism, housing, education and health care.

Eventually, “the oil and gas will be gone, but the food security should be guaranteed,” said Santokhi.

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Oil money for green energy

Oil extraction and refining are major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions.

Though they have historically emitted little, Suriname and Guyana are both deeply affected by global warming — in the crosshairs of worsening tropical storms and of flooding from rising sea levels.

Presidents Santokhi and Irfaan Ali believe they can maintain their countries’ carbon balances by using oil money to protect their forests and invest in green energy.

Defending the forests that cover about 87 percent of Guyana and 93 percent of Suriname is also economically sage: both countries can sell so-called carbon credits to polluters who need to offset emissions.

For Guyana, carbon credits are worth about $190 million per year, said Irfaan Ali.

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Monique Pool, director of the Green Heritage Fund of Suriname, is not convinced by the two-pronged approach.

“Carbon credit will give us more money faster than oil and gas and for longer because it will be sustainable,” she told AFP.

In Georgetown, activist Christopher Ram agreed the oil should be left in the ground, expressing fear of exploitation by ruthless companies in the absence of “good governance.”

Instead, “I would go to the international community and say: ‘We are a small country, we’ve always been good to the environment, we want to stay that way… help us get the benefits we would have got with oil’.”

But 53-year-old Cynthia Neel, who sent her daughter from Suriname to the Netherlands at the age of six for education and a chance at a better life, is hopeful of positive change.

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“I hope that with the oil the children will no longer have to leave,” she told AFP.

Economist Steven Debipersad poses for a picture at the Istitute of Graduate Studies in the Anton de Kom University in Paramaribo, on September 14, 2022. - Emerging as potential oil powers while the world seeks to wean itself off planet-warming fossil fuels, poverty-striken South American neighbors Guyana and Suriname say they have no choice but to cash in while they can. (Photo by Patrick FORT / AFP)

International

Trump Defies Supreme Court With New 10% Global Tariff

Defiant in the face of a judicial setback, Donald Trump on Friday imposed a new across-the-board 10% tariff after the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that he does not have the authority to levy customs duties under the guise of a national emergency.

The Republican president signed the order in the Oval Office and announced on social media that the measure would take effect “almost immediately.” According to a statement from the White House, the decree will formally enter into force on February 24 for a period of 150 days.

It remains unclear whether the new tariff will apply to countries that have already negotiated trade agreements establishing rates higher than 10%.

Earlier in the day, the conservative-majority court ruled that a 1977 law cited by Trump to abruptly impose tariffs on individual countries — disrupting global trade — “does not authorize the president to impose tariffs.”

Trump said he was “deeply disappointed” by the decision and accused some justices of being influenced by “foreign interests.”

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Although he has made variable tariffs a cornerstone of his foreign policy, Trump acknowledged that it is uncertain whether the government will have to refund revenue already collected. A study by the University of Pennsylvaniaestimated that the amount at stake could reach as much as $175 billion.

“That issue was not addressed by the Court,” Trump told reporters, warning that the legal battle could drag on for “years.”

Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who dissented from the Court’s 6–3 majority opinion, cautioned that the legal process could become a “mess.”

Trump denied any error or haste in using tariffs as a policy tool, arguing instead that the six justices who ruled against him were motivated by “political correctness.” Vice President JD Vance wrote on X that the Court had acted “outside the law.”

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International

U.S. Targets Members of Outgoing Boric Administration With Visa Revocations

The United States government announced on Friday the revocation of visas for three Chilean officials—whose identities were not initially disclosed—citing activities that allegedly “undermined regional security,” an accusation that Chile denies.

In a statement, the U.S. Department of State did not provide specific details about the individuals involved but criticized the outgoing administration of leftist President Gabriel Boric.

“The legacy of the Boric government will be further tarnished by actions that undermine regional security to the ultimate detriment of the Chilean people,” the statement read. It was signed by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Chile’s Minister of Transport, Juan Carlos Muñoz, later confirmed in a video message to the press that he is among those sanctioned.

“I was recently informed that my visa to enter the United States has been revoked by that country, which I deeply regret,” Muñoz said.

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The U.S. statement also noted that Washington hopes to “advance shared priorities, including those that strengthen security in our hemisphere, with the upcoming Kast government.”

The electoral victory of ultraconservative leader José Antonio Kast was welcomed in Washington, which has been building alliances with like-minded governments in the region to reinforce its diplomatic and economic agenda—particularly in response to China’s growing investment presence in Latin America.

“We remain committed to promoting accountability for Chilean individuals who deliberately work to destabilize our hemisphere,” the statement concluded.

International

Three Injured in Mail Package Explosion at Buenos Aires Gendarmerie Academy

Three people were injured on Friday after a mail package exploded at the Escuela Superior de Gendarmería in Buenos Aires, according to a statement released by Argentina’s Ministerio de Seguridad.

The explosion occurred at 1:49 p.m. local time (16:49 GMT) inside a building located less than one kilometer from the Government House, the ministry reported.

“Personnel from the force handled a parcel that had reportedly been received months earlier and was being stored at the facility. When it was opened, an explosion occurred, causing injuries to two officers,” the statement said.

The ministry added that both injured officers were transported to a hospital and are not in life-threatening condition. “A third officer remains in recovery and is out of danger,” authorities confirmed.

Following the incident, police cordoned off the surrounding area, halted traffic, and evacuated the 11-story building as well as adjacent buildings on the same block.

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Mariana Bornio, an employee at a telecommunications company located in a neighboring building, said that as she was being evacuated, she saw one of the injured gendarmes leaving the scene shirtless and covered with a blue medical gown.