Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Barbuda Affairs, E.P. Chet Greene, has outlined the five core principles that have guided the government’s ongoing negotiations with the United States regarding the possible acceptance of third-country nationals deported from the U.S.

Speaking during Tuesday’s debate in the House of Representatives on the government’s resolution establishing a framework for the negotiations, Greene said the administration has remained consistent from the outset in protecting the country’s sovereignty and national interests.

“As the Minister with responsibility for Immigration, I can say without hesitation that from the very beginning we approached this matter with five clear principles. Those principles have never changed. They have guided every discussion, every draft and every decision we have made,” Greene told Parliament.

The first principle, he explained, is that Antigua and Barbuda will never agree to a permanent or routine programme under which people can be regularly transferred to the country.

“That was never acceptable. It is not acceptable today, and it will not become acceptable tomorrow,” Greene declared.

The second principle, he said, is that every individual case must remain entirely within the sovereign discretion of Antigua and Barbuda.

“No country, however friendly, could decide who comes into our territory. That decision belongs to Antigua and Barbuda. It belongs to no one else,” the Foreign Minister stated.

Greene said the government’s third guiding principle is to ensure that Antigua and Barbuda is not exposed to unknown legal, financial or national security risks.

He stressed that any uncertainties must be addressed before any arrangement could be considered, adding that no agreement would be possible if adequate safeguards could not be secured.

The fourth principle, according to Greene, is that Antigua and Barbuda should not bear the financial costs associated with another country’s immigration policies.

“Our taxpayers should not be asked to carry that burden,” he said.

Finally, Greene said any cooperation between the two countries must deliver a fair and mutually beneficial outcome for Antigua and Barbuda.

“Friendship requires respect. Respect requires reciprocity,” he told legislators.

The Foreign Minister’s remarks came as Parliament debated a government resolution intended to establish the principles that will govern any future negotiations with the United States concerning the possible transfer of third-country nationals. Government officials have repeatedly maintained that no binding agreement has been signed and that discussions will only proceed within a framework that safeguards Antigua and Barbuda’s sovereignty, security and national interests.