Information Minister, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid
Government has insisted that the Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States of America does not give the US government any form of access to establish a military base in the country.
Information Minister, Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, in a press statement, pointed out that the agreement is a legal framework to govern the ongoing security cooperation between Ghana and the US and does not give the US unfettered access to Ghana as had been widely reported.
“The Defence Cooperation Agreement does not give the US military unfettered access to Ghana. Instead, the DCA addresses the rights and responsibilities of both nations when the US military is present in Ghana, with permission from the government of Ghana and for purposes that the government of Ghana decides are appropriate,” the statement indicated.
According to the information minister, the United States and Ghana have been conducting bilateral and multilateral training activities in Ghana for more than 20 years and by establishing “this expanded legal framework between our countries, we can continue to work closely together on regional and global issues.”
He also pointed out that the agreement was not signed in exchange for money, explaining, “Ghana and US have been having monetary assistance agreements for a long time, including agreements that led to the signing of the Millennium Challenge Compact that built the George Bush Highway in Accra.”
According to Dr Abdul-Hamid, the US has a number of monetary assistance agreements with the Ghana Army which have been running for a long time.
He gave assurance that government would only act in the best interest of Ghanaians.
Parliament on March 23, 2018 ratified the controversial Ghana-US military agreement, but the minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) in parliament staged a last-minute walk-out, although it signed two of a similar agreement during its time in office.
Yesterday, members and supporters of the NDC, together with other opposition parties, marched through the principal streets of Accra to press home their demand for government to cancel the agreement with the US government.
US Reacts
Meanwhile, the United States of America Embassy in Accra has denied the NDC-inspired propaganda that the US is building a military base in Ghana.
In a statement issued yesterday, the embassy pointed out, “The United States has not requested, nor does it intend to request the establishment of a military base in Ghana or the permanent presence of US troops in Ghana. Reports alleging otherwise are inaccurate and misleading.
“The Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) between the governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Ghana is not a base agreement.
“It is the legal framework to govern the ongoing security cooperation between our two sovereign countries; our security cooperation spans more than 20 years and has included numerous bilateral and multilateral training activities in Ghana.
“The United States has a significant number of DCAs with countries around the world, including European, Asian and African partners.
By Gibril Abdul Razak