Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar yesterday said “the truth sometimes hurt”, as she defended her address to regional leaders at Tuesday’s opening ceremony of the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), in St Kitts.

In her address, Persad-Bissessar launched a sharp critique of Caricom leadership, declaring that while Trinidad and Tobago remains “vested” in the regional bloc, it would no longer bind itself to the region’s political ideologies, foreign policy positions, or security frameworks.

Speaking to journalists yesterday in St Kitts following her meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Persad-Bissessar said she was not concerned about the backlash, maintaining that her position was grounded in law.