SOUTHCOM Commander General John Kelly, with responsibility for the 45 countries in the Western Hemisphere, including Central and Latin America as well as the Caribbean, visited Haiti Thursday on the last stop of his Caribbean itinerary.

During his visit, he met with Government of Haiti officials and the UN Force Commander. During his meetings with U.S. Ambassador Pamela White, General Kelly learned about the embassy’s close collaboration with the Government of Haiti, and the progress achieved in the areas of public security, health, growth and investment, energy and infrastructure, training and education, politics and governance, and the rule of law.

Afterwards, he met with the new Minister of the Interior Honorable David Bazile and Director General Godson Orelus of the Haitian National Police to hear their perspectives on the country’s security, vision for the Haitian National Police and thoughts on security cooperation with the United States.

After a quick lunch with members of the military serving in Haiti and the Port-au-Prince Marine Security Detachment, General Kelly traveled to the UN Headquarters, where he met with Major General Fernando Goulart, Force Commander and discussed the UN force’s mission and assistance to the Haitian National Police.

HL/ HaitiLibre