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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Guided by an impressive agenda covering a broad array of issues of common interest to their respective countries, Ambassadors to the United States and Permanent Representatives to the Organization of American States (OAS) or their alternates from CARICOM-member countries participated in an all-day retreat hosted by The Bahamas at the Georgetown Club in Washington, D.C., on Friday, January 15, 2015.
In alignment with Prime Minister Perry Christie’s assumption of Chair of CARICOM between January to June 2015, His Excellency Dr. Eugene Newry, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, officially became chairman of the CARICOM Caucus in Washington D.C. for the first half of the year.
The morning session dealing with OAS matters was chaired by His Excellency Dr. Elliston Rahming, The Bahamas’ Permanent Representative to the OAS and the United Nations, and the afternoon session, addressing matters specifically related to US bilateral relations, was chaired by Ambassador Newry.
During the morning session, retreat participants were addressed by Ms. Sherry Tross, OAS Executive Secretary for Integral Development, on the topic, “Shaping the OAS Development Agenda and OAS Reform,” after which caucus members participated in an open discussion on “OAS Reforms: Management Modernization Initiative and General Standards.”
Caucus members also heard a presentation by Col. Colin Mitchell, Defence and Military Attaché of the Embassy of Trinidad and Tobago, who gave an update on CARICOM security related matters.
Retreat members engaged in an open discussion on VII Summit of the Americas and strategized and finalized a number of recommendations before the luncheon break.
During lunch, delegates were addressed by Mr. Zulfikar Ally, Executive Director of the International Development Bank (IDB) on the bank’s Caribbean Program for 2015 and new indicators of development need that were being championed by the Bank.
The principal speaker at the afternoon session was Mr. Francisco Palmieri, Deputy Assistant Secretary with the U.S. State Department, with responsibility for the Caribbean and Central American region, who spoke on the topic, “Policy Overview of Efforts in the Caribbean for 2015/Caribbean Energy Summit.”
He was accompanied to the retreat by Mr. John W. Dinkelman, Director of the Office of Caribbean Affairs with the U.S. State Department, and Ms. Nooshin Soltani, Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) Coordinator in the Office of Caribbean Affairs with the U.S. State Department.
Delegates held extended discussions on a proposed CARICOM-US Summit and strategized and crafted a number of recommendations before Ambassador Newry wrapped up the session by thanking delegates for their participation and providing an overview of future planned activities under his chairmanship.
In delivering the official “thank you” on behalf of caucus delegates, His Excellency Bayney Karran, Guyana’s Ambassador to the United States and Permanent Representative to the OAS, thanked The Bahamas for “a very timely, very productive and extremely well organized retreat.”
It is hoped that the retreat will lead to enhanced diplomatic engagement of the CARICOM Caucus in Washington D.C. in 2015, both bilaterally and multilaterally, not only with US and OAS counterparts, but also with other regional groups and multilateral entities, and redound to more tangible outcomes for the region.
© Copyright 2015 by thebahamasweekly.com
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