The Caribbean asks the European Union for support for Haiti and to expand bilateral cooperation

Castries,.- The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne, stated this Monday that Caribbean countries should look beyond trade in their relations with the European Union (EU), a bloc to which he requested greater support for Haiti.

This is how Browne expressed himself in his speech to the EU-Caribbean Parliamentary Assembly being held in Antigua and Barbuda and whose agenda includes the situation in Haiti, a member country of the Caribbean Community (Caricom).

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“For small states, international law is not optional, it is existential,” Browne declared to the delegates, adding that, as far as Haiti is concerned, the situation in the country reminds everyone that security and governance cannot be addressed in isolation. The Prime Minister said that “the Caribbean maintains its commitment to a legitimate, transparent and responsible way forward, led by Haitians, with the support of an international commitment”. “It is necessary to control the security situation to end the suffering of the Haitian people and facilitate free and fair elections, at which point the democratic institutions of government must be fully restored,” he added. Alix Didier Fils-Aimé assumed leadership of the interim Government of Haiti following the end of the mandate of the Provisional Transition Council, formed in April 2024 after the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry. On the other hand, Browne said that the Caribbean’s commitments to the EU “should not be limited solely to trade and investment”. “They must be extended to multidimensional security, including food and energy security, health security and protection against transnational crime”, he detailed. In Browne’s opinion, to improve cooperation with the EU, a permanent consultative mechanism should be established, which meets at least twice a year, to develop coordinated Caribbean positions for collaboration with their European counterparts. The three-day meeting is co-chaired by Malik Azmani, from the Renew Europe Group, and by the Vice-President of the Parliament of Jamaica, Heroy Anthony Clarke. The members of Caricom are Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bahamas, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.