(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has expressed heartfelt appreciation to the government of Venezuela for its generosity in extending the PetroCaribe and ALBA initiatives to CARICOM Member States.
Those initiatives have contributed significantly to meeting the energy needs of the Region and to the implementation of social programmes and development initiatives in the Community, said Dr. the Honourable Kenny Anthony, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia and Chairman of the Conference of CARICOM Heads of Government.
The comments were contained in a congratulatory message Prime Minister Anthony dispatched to His Excellency Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela, who was re-elected on 7 October, 2012.
“I look forward to the continued goodwill, friendship, solidarity and cooperation which has characterised CARICOM–Venezuela relations under your Presidency,” the CARICOM Chairman said.
The full text of the message reads:
On behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), I extend heartfelt congratulations to you and to the United Socialist Party of Venezuela on your resounding victory at the polls in the General Elections held on 7 October 2012. Your re-election to the Bolivarian Republic’s highest Office, for an unprecedented fourth term, affirms the confidence of the Venezuelan People in your visionary leadership and further cements your place among the transformative leaders in the hemisphere.
The People of Venezuela have entrusted you with the critical task of continuing to lead the country on its path to sustainable development and overcoming many obstacles to secure the future wellbeing and socio-economic development of Venezuela.
The Caribbean Community shares longstanding ties of history, friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation with Venezuela, and views your country as a hemispheric leader committed to South-South cooperation and Latin American and Caribbean integration by consolidating the links between Latin America and the Caribbean. As Caribbean and Latin American leaders, we are motivated by a mutual concern for the welfare and progress of our People and by our strong commitment to the preservation of peace and stability in the Greater Caribbean, which is a vital economic space for our progress and development.
In this regard, I wish to place on record the Community’s heartfelt appreciation for your Government’s generosity and solidarity in extending the PetroCaribe and ALBA initiatives to CARICOM Member States. These initiatives have contributed significantly to meeting the energy needs of the Region as well as to the implementation of a number of social programmes and development initiatives in the Community.
I look forward to the continued goodwill, friendship, solidarity and cooperation which has characterised CARICOM–Venezuela relations under your Presidency. I wish to extend my very best wishes and those of my colleagues for the continued success of your Administration.
