Antigua and Barbuda and the USA to continue championing Climate Change agenda

Antigua and Barbuda and the United States have committed to continued leadership in the area of Climate Change. 

This was the common position taken by Prime Minister the Gaston Browne and Secretary for the Interior, Her Excellency Debra Haaland who led the United States delegation to the recently concluded Fourth Small Island Developing States Conference in  Antigua.

On the margins of the conference, both Prime Minister Browne and Secretary discussed issues of small island states and the long standing relationship between Antigua and Barbuda and the United States of America, with Prime Minister Browne stating that the United States has been a great partner to Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean and historically, the relationship dates back to the days of slavery when peoples of the Caribbean moved between the islands and the USA, with many Caribbean people becoming citizens of the USA.

He pointed out that the Caribbean’s largest diaspora is in the United States and the relationship extends through trade and tourism, with the US being the largest supplier of food and tourists to the region.

Secretary Haaland commended Prime Minister Browne for the excellent leadership he is providing to small island states and pledged the United States support in ensuring that the SIDS agenda remains a priority to her administration.

“We have to make sure that we’re doing all we can to ensure that small states sustainably develop so that they have a future for their grandchildren. We are global citizens and global neighbors on planet earth and we have a common interest to protect our planet,” she said.

Prime Minister Browne asked Secretary Haaland to convey his government’s appreciation to President Biden for his support of the SIDS conference and his leadership on the issue of Climate Change.  He noted that the United States leadership is highly commendable and it is his hope that the US will continue this fight in the interest of the world’s population, particularly small island states.

Prime Minister Browne and Secretary Haaland also participated in an interactive dialogue on revitalizing SIDS economies for accelerated and sustainable Growth, a theme which they both discussed during the bilateral meeting attended by Works Minister the Hon. Maria Browne.

Discussions also centred on the World Trade Organisation matter between Antigua and Barbuda and the United States, with Prime Minister Browne presenting a number of possible solutions to the long standing dispute.  The matter of the location of a United States Embassy in the OECS was also discussed with Prime Minister Browne making a strong case for Antigua and Barbuda to be the host country of the new embassy.