Conference on the Caribbean

2007 Conference on the Caribbean

President Bush met with his counterparts from the 14 sovereign nations of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) on June 20, 2007, as part of the Conference on the Caribbean, which was held at the U.S. Department of State, June 18-21, 2007.  Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham and Foreign Minister Brent Symonette participated in the Conference, which included meetings with President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

The Conference on the Caribbean continues an important dialogue between the United States and CARICOM, and it forms an integral part of the President’s Western Hemisphere Initiative.  As was expected by Embassy Nassau, the discussions in Washington, DC helped set the agenda for relations between the United States and the CARICOM countries for coming years. 

The Conference iwas a multifaceted event that included the Presidential meeting, a Ministerial, and three days of discussions among academic and private sector experts and high-level Caribbean and United States officials on the future of the Caribbean.  Discussions focused on economic growth, investing in people, and security issues.

A/S Thomas A. Shannon and Ellsworth I.A. John, Ambassador to St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors, welcome Caribbean community to Caricom

Assistant Secretary Thomas A. Shannon and Ellsworth I.A. John, Ambassador to St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Chair of the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors, discussed  the upcoming Conference on the Caribbean, to be held in Washington, DC, June 18-21. 

A video recording of Assistant Secretary Shannon and Ambassador John’s comments may be found on the State Department website at http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2007/jun/86535.htm 

For additional updates visit these sites:http://www.state.gov/r/pa/scp/86778.htm  http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/86885.pdf

Conference on the Caribbean blog: (http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/whapa/)

For more information visit: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/06/20070620-12.html.