Gov't to back Guadeloupe, Martinique for OECS

Correction & Clarification

The Gleaner incorrectly identified Roosevelt Skerritt, who is the Prime Minister of Dominica, as Baldwin Spencer, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda.
We regret the error.

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ROSEAU (CMC):

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit says he will support moves by the French islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique for associate membership of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Speaking at a meeting on the island's geothermal energy project involving representatives from the Regional Councils of Guadeloupe and Martinique and a French-based non-government organisation, Skerrit said he believed that the French islands "have an important role to play in the process of political integration with the OECS".

The OECS groups the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.

He said while the two French islands were considered European territories "but you are in the Caribbean and we share many common challenges which require our common approach to addressing those challenges".

He said the sub-region could not speak about dealing with security "without bringing the French assets into play in fighting transnational crimes".