Royal Navy: HMS Trent sent to Guyana to deter drug smugglers and support nation amid Venezuela border dispute

Portsmouth-based HMS Trent has taken the place of Type 45 destroyer HMS Dauntless in patrolling the area. The patrol vessel is maintaining the UK's commitment to support Guyana, a country which is currently having a border dispute with Venezuela over the Essequibo region.

Sailors will also be on the look out for drug smugglers operating in the region, after previous crews confiscated tens of millions of pounds worth of narcotics last year. HMS Trent initially dropped anchor in the capital Georgetown welcomed aboard Guyana’s Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier Omar Khan. British High Commissioner to Guyana, Mrs Jane Miller and a number of other dignitaries, were also present.

This gave the crew the chance to show their guests the ship's main capabilities and the operations she undertakes. First Lieutenant Robin Poyser led a team from Trent ashore to visit a newly-built hydroponics facility. He said: "It was fantastic to spend time ashore in Guyana with our friends and allies. It was an experience I’ll always cherish."

A total of 40 members of the Guyanan Coastguard and Defence Force toured the offshore patrol vessel. Training and combined manoeuvres concluded the visit. HMS Trent had previously been operating on the west coast of Africa as part of a long term security mission. For many of the sailors it was their first experience of a long ocean transit.

Following the exercises, the crew were rewarded with some downtime in Bridgetown, Barbados, in December. Shortly afterwards, the ship returned to Bridgetown to complete urgent tasking and a crew rotation. Sailors then headed to Puerto Rico to embark a United States Coast Guard team - who will assist them in hunting smugglers.

Sub-lieutenant Alex Kemp said: “Working with our United States Coast Guard colleagues is tremendously exciting and I cannot wait for our drug interdiction operations to begin.”