Regional security tops agenda of Commander of US Southern Command visit to St. Kitts

General Douglas Fraser, Commander of the United States Southern Command (Photo courtesy of the US Embassy in Barbados)

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, MAY 11TH 2011 (CUOPM) – Transnational crime, illicit trafficking and regional security issues are the main areas of discussion when General Douglas Fraser, Commander of the United States Southern Command, visits St. Kitts and Nevis on Wednesday as part of a four-nation familiarization visit to the Caribbean.

General Fraser will meet with top political and national security officials, including St. Kitts and Nevis’ Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas; Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Hon. Sam Condor, and Chief of Staff of the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force, Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Wallace.

Rebecca A. Ross, Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean said General Fraser will discuss bilateral and regional security cooperation to address transnational crime and illicit trafficking, particularly through such partnerships as the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, Tradewinds and Secure Seas.

The United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) is a joint command comprised of more than 1,200 military and civilian personnel representing the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and several other federal agencies.

“It is responsible for providing contingency planning, operations, and security cooperation for Central and South America, the Caribbean, Cuba; as well as for the force protection of U.S. military resources at these locations. SOUTHCOM is also responsible for ensuring the defense of the Panama Canal and canal area,” Ross said.

General Douglas Fraser comes to U.S. Southern Command from U.S. Pacific Command, where he served as the Deputy Commander from 2008 to 2009. He is a 1975 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and a native of Colorado. He spent three years of high school in Bogota, Colombia, graduating from Colegio Nueva Granada in 1971.

General Fraser has commanded operational units across the U.S. Air Force, including the 12th Fighter Squadron at Kadena Air Base, Japan, and the 366th Operations Group at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho and the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska from 2000 to 2002.

Following his time at the 3rd Wing, he commanded the Space Warfare Center at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado and four distinct commands while serving his second time in Alaska, including Alaskan Command, the Alaskan North American Defense Region, Joint Task Force Alaska, and Eleventh Air Force at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.

General Fraser’s staff assignments include Aide to the 12th Air Force Commander, action officer for Air Force’s Directorate of Programs and Resources, the Air Force Chief of Staff’s Action Group, and analysis assistant in the Office of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Requirements.