Caribbean Foreign Ministers met with the United States (US) Secretary of State in the margins of the General Assembly of the Organisation of American States (OAS) in Quito, Ecuador, on 7 June 2004.
Following the reciprocal expression of condolences concerning the tragic loss of life during the catastrophic floods in the Dominican Republic and Haiti and the passing of former President of the United States Ronald Reagan, a number of issues of mutual interest were touched upon.
Concerning Haiti, both sides were at one in the desire to help Haiti whose situation has become even more desperate following the devastating floods of May. In this regard, generous assistance has been provided by individual Caribbean countries and by the United States. Both sides also agreed on the urgent need to help Haiti recover stability and rebuild its institutions, particularly its judiciary and police. Job creation was seen as an essential element of strengthening the Haitian economy and to this end the United States had pledged to infuse funds.
The Secretary of State saw the return of Haiti into the CARICOM family as a crucial step and looked forward to CARICOM's participation in the international efforts to assist Haiti. It was pointed out that CARICOM had been engaged with Haiti in a number of ways while awaiting the outcome of the forthcoming Conference of Heads on the issue of recognition. However, the views of CARICOM Foreign Ministers present and those of the US Secretary of State differed on the circumstances surrounding the departure of the former President.
The concerns and great unease felt in Belize and CARICOM following the retreat of Guatemala from the OAS arbitration process on the territorial dispute were expressed. The need for Guatemala to respect agreements freely entered into as well as the territorial integrity of Belize was emphasised as well as the useful role of the Group of Friends.
The Secretary of State requested Caribbean support for a US candidate to the OAS Juridical Committee and touched briefly on the importance the US continues to give to the conclusion of Article 98 agreements exempting US nationals from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
