WASHINGTON, CMC – United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio has signaled a real willingness to listen to the Caribbean Group (CARICOM) communicate for itself. At a second when his diplomatic information stretch throughout quite a few disaster zones, that focus is neither trivial nor routine.
Barely three months into his tenure, Secretary Rubio has already conferred with six CARICOM Heads of Authorities and can host seven extra in Washington on Might 6. Such early, sustained engagement indicators that the area’s counsel carries weight. In diplomacy, there is no such thing as a substitute for dialogue, particularly when new insurance policies are being solid. These conferences, due to this fact, are important.
Secretary Rubio started his Caribbean circuit in Jamaica on March 26, consulting with the Prime Ministers of Barbados, Haiti, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago. The subsequent day, he met Presidents Irfaan Ali in Guyana and Chandrikapersad Santokhi in Suriname. The itinerary now strikes to welcoming the leaders of the six unbiased Jap Caribbean states and The Bahamas.
When Secretary Rubio met Caribbean leaders on March 26–27, the White Home had not but unveiled the sweeping tariff order issued on April 3 by President Donald Trump. Consequently, neither the speedy blow to regional exports nor the broader shockwaves of Washington’s international tariffs could possibly be weighed. The tariffs—and their direct and oblique impression on Caribbean economies—will undoubtedly be addressed when the leaders meet Secretary Rubio in Washington on Might 6.
Central to that dialog is the destiny of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI)—President Reagan’s legacy program—formalized within the 1983 Caribbean Basin Financial Restoration Act (CBERA), which has lengthy granted duty-free entry to a variety of CARICOM exports.
The brand new tariffs introduced on April 3 solid a shadow over these preferences; nobody but is aware of whether or not CBERA’s hard-won reduction survives intact or has been diminished by the flood of duties.
Tariffs are solely the primary set of considerations that ought to be mentioned on Might 6. The agenda might additionally confront US allegations that Cuban medical personnel in CARICOM are “trafficked,” a declare CARICOM governments vigorously dispute; Washington’s unease over China’s rising function within the improvement plans of 9 CARICOM members—balanced by the truth that three of the seven leaders arriving in Washington acknowledge Taiwan; the therapy and due course of rights of CARICOM nationals within the US who could face deportation for violating visa situations or committing prison offenses; and the way forward for Citizenship by Funding packages, which have been lifelines for 5 Jap Caribbean economies.
On the matter of Cuban employees in CARICOM international locations, Secretary Rubio can anticipate a agency and united repudiation of any suggestion that trafficking is happening beneath the watch of Caribbean governments.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness of Jamaica has already acknowledged that Cuban employees in CARICOM are effectively handled, pretty compensated, and luxuriate in full freedom.
Leaders of the Jap Caribbean will affirm that they pay these employees immediately and are open to growing transparency round these preparations. CARICOM’s reliance on Cuban medical personnel is born not of ideology however necessity. Our docs and nurses, educated at public expense, are routinely drawn away by richer international locations—together with the US. What stays is a healthcare vacuum that Cuban professionals have helped to fill.
Concerning China and Taiwan’s function within the area’s improvement, Secretary Rubio will discover no quarrel amongst CARICOM states about which associate a authorities engages—Beijing or Taipei. Every nation acts in pursuit of its nationwide curiosity, pushed by the crucial of financial survival and the seek for significant worldwide help. What unites CARICOM is a collective stake in international peace, shared prosperity, and the advantages of cooperation.
On the problem of Caribbean nationals residing unlawfully within the US or designated for deportation as a consequence of prison convictions, CARICOM governments are able to obtain their residents.
Repatriation, in and of itself, shouldn’t be in dispute. What issues is that these individuals are afforded due course of, honest listening to, and humane therapy. The dignity of Caribbean nationals—even when in violation of US immigration regulation—should not be collateral injury within the enforcement of coverage.
Regarding the Citizenship by Funding (CBI) packages operated by 5 Jap Caribbean states, leaders will remind Secretary Rubio that these initiatives are important to their financial viability. Furthermore, Caribbean CBI packages are already closed to nationals from international locations that increase crimson flags for US authorities. Critically, citizenship in these states doesn’t confer computerized entry to the U.S. Each particular person—no matter how or the place they obtained their Caribbean passport—stays absolutely topic to US visa and homeland safety vetting.
The CBI framework, then, shouldn’t be a backdoor to US soil however a professional instrument of financial survival with sturdy safeguards.
What Secretary Rubio will hear from each CARICOM chief is a shared resolve to protect and deepen their partnership with the US. This isn’t a relationship of comfort however of selection -anchored within the pressing, hemispheric challenges we face collectively. Illnesses and pandemics don’t cease at customs gates; organized crime, together with the drug commerce, corrodes our societies with equal menace; climate-induced disasters batter our international locations with growing ferocity. And but, amid these trials, there’s a actual alternative to construct resilient, affluent societies which can be magnets for funding, hubs of tourism, and engines of shared development.
The US has constantly maintained a commerce surplus in items and providers with CARICOM. In 2024 alone, that surplus stood at US$5.8 billion—a transparent reflection of CARICOM’s openness and enduring loyalty to the US. On issues of nationwide safety, the Caribbean has been no much less reliable.
CARICOM international locations have confirmed themselves steadfast and cooperative, whether or not by intelligence-sharing, maritime safety, or counter-narcotics efforts. In each respect, the area has functioned as a dedicated ally.
Hopefully, Might 6 will stand as an additional milestone within the renewal and strengthening of US–CARICOM relations—a second when mutual pursuits are acknowledged, mutual respect reaffirmed, and a shared dedication to partnership charted with readability and conviction.
*Sir Ronald Sanders is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the US and the OAS. He’s additionally the Dean of the Ambassadors of the Western Hemisphere Group accredited to the US. The views expressed are fully his personal)
