War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Guyanese President Mohamed Irfaan Ali signed an agreement Wednesday that created an enhanced defense partnership between the United States and Guyana.

The Pentagon said the partnership will strengthen the two countries' ability to confront narco-terrorist networks, secure the Caribbean and push back on military influence from outside the Western Hemisphere.

"Your leadership across the region with key Caribbean partners has been indispensable," Hegseth told Ali. "Countries look to you. You've taken the lead, you've stepped out, laying the foundation for what we're doing in the hemisphere." 

The secretary noted that Guyana's devotion to pushing back on shared challenges with the U.S. has "inspired confidence for us."

"I hope you've seen that our investment has inspired confidence in you, in security forces, in our militaries and in the landmark joint declaration today to further elevate our defense cooperation on our all-domain partnership," he added.

The secretary also said the U.S. will intensify combined training in multidomain operations and in air interdiction.

Ali praised the U.S. for pursuing a "region that's free from narco-trafficking, free from international actors that are bad for the region, free from terrorism and free from any thinking from any group or cell anywhere in the world that this is a region where they can find a home."

"The things that are critical for stability in the region, sustainable [for] long-term prosperity and stability, are the very things you're pursuing," Ali said. "This is the era of action; this is the era of leadership; this is the era of domination and commitment, and we're very happy to be part of this partnership. We look forward to working with you in a stronger way."

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.