By Roberson Alphonse, Le Nouvelliste, Feb. 6, 2026
The Haitian government can now purchase defense equipment and services for the Haitian Coast Guard. For the first time since the 1990s, the FAD'H (Armed Forces of Haiti) will receive a portion of the $5 million allocated to the "Foreign Military Financing Program" and "Peacekeeping Operations," in accordance with the provisions of HR 7148, the consolidated budget law for fiscal year 2026, promulgated on February 3 by President Donald Trump.
"The Government of Haiti is authorized to purchase defense equipment and services under the Arms Export Control Act (22 USC 2751 et seq.) for the needs of the Coast Guard"; And with regard to the FAD'H, "out of the funds allocated by this Act under the headings 'Peacekeeping Operations' and 'Foreign Military Funding Program', up to $5,000,000 may be made available for non-lethal assistance and operational support to the Armed Forces of Haiti, after consultation with the appropriate committees of Congress," reads this US finance law.
Meanwhile, collaboration between the U.S. military and the FAD'H has strengthened in recent months. “The Senior Defense Attaché and the Military Attaché at the Embassy recently met with Defense Minister Jean-Michel Moïse to reinforce our shared interest in Haiti’s stability. The joint efforts of the Department of Defense, the Haitian National Police, and the Gang Repression Force (FRG) to confront terrorist gangs are essential to restoring security and stabilizing Haiti. The United States stands with Haiti and the Haitian people in their aspirations for a safer and more prosperous Haiti,” a Feb. 6, 2026 press release from the U.S. Embassy said.
"The FAD'H had never before received foreign military aid from the United States, and this recently adopted bill shows the potential of the FAD'H to play an even more important role in restoring stability and security in Haiti," Defense Minister Jean Michel Moïse told Le Nouvelliste.
"I look forward to working with the United States and our other international partners to develop the FAd'H," he continued before offering his thanks.
“On behalf of the Haitian people, the entire Haitian government, and the Haitian Armed Forces, I thank the United States Embassy, the U.S. government, and Congress for working diligently alongside us to restore security in Haiti and for allocating a significant sum to the FAd'H to develop its capabilities,” said Jean Michel Moïse. “We look forward to working with the United States and building a lasting military partnership for our mutual security interests in the region,” the Defense Minister told Le Nouvelliste.
Earlier this week, the US Embassy announced that “at the direction of the Secretary of War, the ships USS Stockdale, USCGC Stone, and USCGC Diligence arrived in the bay of Port-au-Prince as part of Operation Southern Spear . Their presence reflects the unwavering commitment of the United States to the security, stability, and brighter future of Haiti. The US Navy and the US Coast Guard reaffirm their partnership and support to ensure a safer and more prosperous Haiti,” according to the statement.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed the Trump administration's willingness to "adopt a military posture" to confront the gangs, transnational terrorist organizations operating in Haiti and other countries in the region. These gangs, which possess state-level weaponry, constitute a "grave threat" to US national security and regional stability, he said during a Senate hearing on Wednesday, January 28, 2026.
“In our region, we face a very real threat: these transnational terrorist criminal organizations, which in many cases possess weapons normally associated with a state. They represent a serious threat to the national security of the United States, but also to the stability of the region. We must adopt a military posture capable of confronting them and providing assistance, in coordination with other partners,” stated Marco Rubio, Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, whose administration is using the military in targeted strikes against boats and their crews accused of transporting drugs.
“What is the threat in Haiti? Systemic collapse. These criminal gangs control territories and threaten the very capacity to form a government,” he explained, referring to gangs operating in Venezuela and Colombia, among others. The top U.S. diplomat emphasized the importance of cooperation with certain countries in the region in the fight against these gangs or transnational terrorist organizations, according to the Trump administration. The actions of these organizations “ultimately affect the United States, through mass migration, through drug trafficking,” Rubio insisted. “We must therefore adopt a posture of strength capable of confronting this,” he added.
This opportunity granted to Haiti to purchase defense equipment and services for the Haitian coast guard comes in the context of demands from the US coast guard to secure Haitian ports.
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has determined that "the Haitian government was not substantially implementing the International Code for the Security of Ships and Port Facilities at the national and port facility levels" and was not "observing the implementation of effective security measures," according to a letter sent to the Haitian government via the U.S. Embassy in Haiti, Le Nouvelliste learned on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
Haitian ports must undergo a compliance inspection within 90 days. In the meantime, a series of measures must be implemented. Vessels failing to comply with these measures may be denied access to US ports from Haiti, warned the USGC, which cited specific deficiencies. Officials from the National Port Authority (APN) indicated they are working diligently to meet the USGC's requirements.
The U.S. government's decision to acquire defense equipment and services for the Haitian Coast Guard comes amid the existence of a draft contract between the Haitian government and the firm Evergreen, Alex Stewart International, Ense Group, and SecuriPort. This 10-year contract, aimed at strengthening security at the border with the Dominican Republic and in Haitian ports, is currently under review by the Superior Court of Accounts and Administrative Disputes (CSCCA), Le Nouvelliste learned from a government source. The contract has been returned to the government for correction and clarification of certain points. The consortium's work is intended to improve customs revenue collection and streamline the entry and exit process. Customs, the Haitian National Police (PNH), and the Ministry of the Interior will be responsible for on-the-ground inspections and revenue collection, the government source told Le Nouvelliste in January 2026.
Posted Feb. 11, 2026