WASHINGTON, D.C., June 28, 2023 – His Excellency Wendall K. Jones, Bahamas Ambassador to the United States, hosted a United States briefing meeting for the Ambassadors of CARICOM and the Dominican Republic at the Bahamas Embassy, 600 New Hampshire Ave., N.W., on Tuesday, June 27, 2023.
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Caribbean Affairs and Haiti Barbara A. Feinstein gave a read-out of Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to The Bahamas and Ambassador Jessica Lapenn gave a briefing on the U.S. initiative on Atlantic Cooperation
In his remarks, Ambassador Jones noted that since the Summit of the Americas almost a year ago in Los Angeles, “we have been talking about the real and acute economic and security challenges of countries in the Caribbean.”
“We know there is no magical solution to our problems,” he said. “However, real lasting solutions will only come when we continue to work for those solutions. That is why we were quite pleased to welcome Vice President Kamala Harris and the delegation from the U.S. State Department to The Bahamas on June 8th for talks with Heads of Caribbean governments.”
Ambassador Jones added, “Over the last twelve months, some progress has been made, but we must continue our search with intensity for human dignity, security, and economic justice. How to achieve a fair division of the earth’s plenty is a question which has exercised the mind of man from time immemorial.
“The needs and problems of Caribbean peoples are not abstract. They are real and they require real, practical solutions.
He recalled that decades ago, the founding father of The Bahamas Sir Lynden Pindling, speaking in the 9th meeting of CARICOM Heads in Antigua and Barbuda said, “Our ultimate test as CARICOM leaders who claim to represent the dispossessed is not the elegance of our theories, but the extent to which we improve the social and economic conditions of our people.” That remains the situation today.
“Without reinventing the wheel,” Ambassador Jones said, “we need to glean the best from whatever source and set out on a new quest for human dignity and economic justice for our people; a quest which is grounded in a clear-eyed appraisal of our objective circumstances, a realistic review of our people’s capabilities and dispositions”.
He added, “With that said, CARICOM is pleased with the significant improvement of dialogue between the United States of America and CARICOM leaders as well as the financial assistance recently announced by the Vice President. Among the issues discussed in Nassau were security and firearms trafficking, the U.S. Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030, and Haiti. Many initiatives were announced and commitments made.
“There are many powerful voices in international fora saying the right things, but we must pick up the pace and deliver for the people in urgent need of assistance.
“Climate change will continue as a hot button issue until there is action to deliver. As President Macron of France aptly stated in Paris last week, ‘poverty and climate cannot be separated.’ In the Caribbean we have some of the most beautiful waters in the world surrounding the nations of the region. We must be vigilant and protect those waters from pollution and indeed explore ways to cooperate to improve maritime governance.
“We are pleased to welcome Ambassador Jessica Lapenn to give a briefing on the U.S. Initiative on Atlantic Cooperation and a read-out of Vice President Harris’ visit to The Bahamas by Deputy Assistant Secretary Barbara Feinstein.”
