OECS says that Venezuela is not being considered for membership

By Melissa Bryant
Reporter~SKNVibes.com

~~Adz:Right~~CARACAS, Venezuela – CONTRARY to recent media reports, the Director-General of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), Dr. Len Ishmael, has stated that Venezuela is not currently being considered to join the OECS.

According to Caribbean Net News, a question about Venezuela joining the grouping was raised at the closing press conference of the recently concluded 48th Meeting of the OECS Authority in Montserrat on November 22.

According to Dr. Ishmael, the OECS is currently preoccupied with its own timetable to implement plans for an Economic Union among its member states.

She however noted that strong bilateral relations exist between Venezuela and OECS member states and that there are already some areas in which the Latin American country had engaged the OECS at a regional level.

“Any initiatives aimed at strengthening the bonds of functional collaboration at the regional level would be discussed by the individual member states,” said Ishmael.

Venezuela is among a growing number of countries that have sought in recent months to formalise ties with the OECS through different arrangements, including the presentation of credentials at the regional level.