Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne Monday said Caribbean countries should look beyond trade in their relations with the European Union (EU).
Addressing the inaugural three-day EU-Caribbean Parliamentary Assembly, Prime Minister Brown also urged support for Haiti, the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country undergoing severe socio-economic and security problems and where criminal gangs are seeking to overthrow the interim government.
The situation in Haiti is among the agenda items for the meeting here.
Earlier this month, the United States re-affirmed its support for Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimè after he assumed leadership of the interim government following the end of the mandate of the Provisional Transitional Council (CPT). Watch video
The CPT was established in April 2024 to restore political stability, address the security crisis caused by powerful armed gangs, and facilitate a transition of power following the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry.
The nine-member council was created to select a new prime minister and cabinet, prepare for, and oversee the nation’s next elections, which are planned for early 2026. Since April 2024, Haiti has held no national elections.
It left office none days ago with its tenure marred by infighting, poor governance and paralysis, as well as persistent allegations of influence peddling, corruption, collusion with armed gangs and of diverting public resources for personal gain.
Browne told the Assembly that on territorial integrity, ‘our position is unambiguous. Borders matter, commitments matter, international adjudication matters. When states choose courts over confrontation, those choices must be honoured.
‘For small states, international law is not optional.it is existential,’ Browne told the delegates, adding that with regards to Haiti, the situation in the country reminds all that security and governance cannot be addressed in isolation.
‘The Caribbean remains committed to a legitimate, transparent and accountable Haitian-led path forward, supported by sustained international engagement. The security situation must be brought under control to stop the suffering of the Haitian people and to facilitate free and fair elections at which time the democratic institutions of government must be fully restored,’ Browne said.
He said that there is recognition that the majority of EU assistance to the Caribbean is directed at Haiti alone.
‘The circumstances of Haiti must change so that the country can rise up from its knees, stand up for itself and its responsibilities,’ Browne said.
He told the delegates that the EU countries have a ‘physical and lawful presence’ in the Caribbean and together we have a shared concern about transnational crime. He said intelligence sharing, maritime cooperation as well as financial crime interdiction are areas for further cooperation.
But speaking specifically to the various Caribbean delegations, Prime Minister Browne said the joint EU-Caribbean Assembly will only be strong as the seriousness and discipline ‘we bring to it.
‘I therefore urge Caribbean parliamentarians that we act together to meet more frequently to coordinate positions and to translate this partnership into clear recommendations to our national parliaments.
‘Our engagements with the European Union must not be confined to trade and investments alone. It must extend to multi-dimensional security, including food and energy security, health security, education resilience.and protection against transnational crime and climate disruption’.
Browne outlined three ‘practical’ steps for enhancing the cooperation with the EU, urging regional parliamentarians meeting here to establish a standing consultative mechanism, meeting at least twice annually ‘to develop coordinated Caribbean positions for engagement with their European counterparts.
‘This group should produce concise action orientated recommendations to national parliaments focused on aligning domestic legislation .with agreed European Union objectives in trade, logistics, security cooperation, food and energy systems, health partnerships and educational access.
‘Third, we should commit to parliamentary follow through using our oversight functions to track implementation, identify obstacles to ensure that commitments made at the regional and international levels are reflected in national policies and budgets’.
Prime Minister Browne said this is how this Assembly can evolve and mature from dialogue to direction and to delivery.
Browne told the gathering that the world is now living through a period of geopolitical adjustments with some countries retreating from cooperation, some narrowing alliances and others substituting leverage for law.
‘In this gathering we are choosing a different course. We choose rules over uncertainty.we choose partnership over fragmentation and we value partners that understanding that lasting stability is built not be dominance but by collaboration.
‘This Assembly must therefore be practical, strategic and forward thinking,’ he said, urging support for countries to deal with the impact of climate change, improve trade rules and defend sovereignty through law.
The three-day meeting here is being co-chaired by Malik Azmani of the Renew Group and Jamaica’s Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Heroy Anthony Clarke both of whom serve as the Co-Presidents of the EU-Caribbean Parliamentary Assembly.
According to the agenda, during the three days, parliamentarians from Europe and the Caribbean will debate five key themes, namely climate resilience, the sargassum phenomenon and the energy transition, trade and investment, transnational organised crime, territorial integrity and multilateralism and the situation in Haiti
The parliamentarians will conclude their work by adopting concrete recommendations to be addressed to the EU-Caribbean Council of Ministers.