hegseth caine trump caribbean boat strikes.

Top U.S. military officials are meeting leaders of Caribbean nations this week as the Trump administration has escalated its firepower in the region as part of what it calls a campaign against drug trafficking. The Pentagon says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and meet Wednesday with President Luis Abinader and other officials. The announcement Tuesday came the same day that Gen. Dan Caine, who is chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and President Donald Trump’s primary military adviser, met with Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar. She has stood out for her public praise of the deadly U.S. attacks on alleged drug-smuggling boats.