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| Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris (Photo by Erasmus Williams) |
BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, JUNE 6TH 2005 (CUOPM) St. Kitts and Nevis and other member nations of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) reviewed their relationship with several regional, hemispheric and international organisations during last weeks Eight Meeting of the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) in The Bahamas.
The Meeting in Freeport, Grand Bahama on June 1st and 2nd , was attended by St. Kitts and Nevis Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris.
According to the Communique issued following the meeting, Ministers of Foreign Affairs welcomed the election of the new Secretary General of the OAS, His Excellency Ignacius José Miguel Insulza, and noted in this regard, the enhanced role that the Secretary-General envisioned for the OAS in strengthening democracy and good governance in the hemisphere, and in promoting within that Organisation the enhancement of economic, social and cultural conditions for the peoples of the Americas.
Ministers stressed the need for the OAS to continue to define security from a multi-faceted approach which would include, poverty and HIV/AIDS. They also recognised the need to promote the delivery of technical cooperation along a programmatic theme with modules rather than individual projects.
Foreign Ministers reviewed the Draft Declaration of Florida prepared by the USA which was expected to be adopted at the XXXV Meeting of the General Assembly. Ministers indicated their intention to actively participate in the discussions at the Meeting on this issue.
Preparation for the Fourth Summit of the Association of Caribbean States which is scheduled to be held in Panama City, Panama, from 28-29 July 2005 was also discussed. It will be held under the theme: The ACS: Realising Its Vision.
Ministers emphasised the continued geo-political importance of an ACS with a shared vision and purpose, and as a forum for consultation, cooperation and coordination among the countries of the wider Caribbean.
Ministers expressed the hope that the Summit would attract the participation of all Heads of Government of the ACS in order that the vision for the ACS for the next five to ten years may be adopted at the highest political level.
With regards to the Fourth Summit of the Americas to be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in November 2005, the Caribbean Ministers of Foreign Affairs agreed that the Region would continue its coordinated approach to the Summit.
Ministers also noted the current developments on the issue of United Nations reform generally, and on the various, specific options which have been proferred in respect of the reform of the ECOSOC, the Security Council, and the Human Rights Commission. They also noted the proposed establishment of a Peace-building Commission.
Caribbean Foreign Ministers agreed that the decisions taken on UN reform will have long-lasting consequences for the functioning of the organisation, as well as for the development, security, and human rights issues that fall within its purview.
Ministers also agreed to the establishment of a core Group of the Bureau expanded, and supported by the respective Permanent Representatives to the UN in New York, mandated to keep abreast of developments in the UN on the issue of reform as a whole, and to carry forward the views of the Community on these issues in a timely and coherent manner, the Communique said.
Ministers agreed to keep Heads of Government fully informed of these developments.
The Ministers welcomed the assumption by Guyana on behalf of CARICOM of the Chairmanship of the Rio Group in 2006 and acknowledged the key role which the Rio Group continued to play as a forum for political consultation and cooperation in the Latin American region and in that regard pledged their continued support to Guyana in its chairmanship. The Ministers also agreed to recommend to the Conference the endorsement of Belize's application for full membership of the Rio Group.
