Submitted by Dr. Roland Clarke
UK refused the obligation to militarily defend Barbados in 1966
Upon Barbados’ independence in 1966, the UK did not offer a formal, standing military protection agreement or defence treaty. Instead, the UK Parliament declared that it would no longer have responsibility for the government, defense, or external affairs of Barbados. [1, 2, 3, 4]
During the parliamentary debates surrounding the Barbados Independence Bill, the UK government’s position was made clear:
– No standing commitment:
The UK did not envisage any threat of external aggression to Barbados and did not commit to automatic military intervention.
– Sympathetic consideration:
It was stated in the House of Lords that if a situation should arise in which Barbados felt it necessary to seek assistance, the UK would “naturally expect to consider any request sympathetically in the light of the circumstances”.
This meant requests would be considered on a case-by-case basis, rather than through a pre-agreed pact.
– Defence Force aid:
The UK also expressed willingness to consider, with sympathy, any request for training aid for the local volunteer defence force, the Barbados Regiment. [3, 5]
CONCLUSION
The Barbados Independence Act 1966 focused on the legal and constitutional transition to a fully self-governing, sovereign status within the Commonwealth, and did not include a specific clause for ongoing UK military protection. [1, 6, 7, 8]
POST SCRIPT
Today, Barbados has military arrangements through the Regional Security System (RSS) (1982) which includes the UK.
That means that over the period 1966 – 1982, the training wheels were off for Barbados.
REFERENCES
[1] https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1966/37/enacted/data.html
[2] https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1966/37/body
[3] https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1966/nov/10/barbados-independence-bill
[4] https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1966/37/body
[5] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9898689/
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbados_Independence_Act_1966
[7] https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/legal/legislation/uk-parliament-acts/barbados-independence-act-1966-c37
[8] https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1966/37/body
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CURATED by Dr Roland Clarke, Barbados
References attributed to Google AI
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