Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves of St. Vincent has provided reassurances to the Organization of American States (OAS) that the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was not intended as a substitute for the OAS.
The Caribbean island prime minister provided his promise on Friday during his remarks at the Protocolary Meeting of the Permanent Council in Washington, D.C.
The Pro Tempore President of the Community of Latin America and Caribbean States (CELAC), St. Vincent, elucidated that the mandate of CELAC differs significantly from that of the Organization of American States (OAS).
According to Gonsalves, CELAC is a suitable platform for engaging with the United nations on areas pertaining to the interests and concerns of both CELAC member nations and the USA.
“CELAC has an integration focus quite distinct from the OAS mandates, and it possesses enormous potential for good. It’s very important for me to emphasize that CELAC was never designed as an alternative to the OAS. So I don’t want the Distinguished Secretary-General to make it known abroad that CELAC is seeking to replace the OAS. We have different mandates, and I was there at the original design”.
“I’m using this forum to indicate something publicly, which I’ve done privately for a conversation between CELAC and the United States of America. Indeed. At the Summit of the Americas, certain matters were not able to be discussed in the manner in which they ought to have been discussed, consequent upon the exclusion of three countries in our hemisphere family, that is to say, Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, and consequently, some other countries either didn’t attend or their leaders did not attend. Let’s consider something of great importance to CELAC and also to the United States of America. Migration. How are you going to discuss migration? At any gathering without talking to Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Mexico, or Honduras. We have to be mature and reflective about these questions. That’s one, but there are others that we can talk about”, Gonsalves said.
It is expected that the transfer of the temporary presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) would occur in February 2024, transitioning from St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) to the Republic of Honduras, situated in Central America.
In the month of July, the nation of Central America, with a population of approximately 9.7 million individuals, was designated to undertake the pro tempore presidency of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) for the year 2024. The aforementioned resolution was reached in the meeting held in Brussels between the European Union (EU) and CELAC.
The third summit between the blocs took place in Brussels over a two-day period, spanning from July 17 to July 18, 2023. This summit was conducted under the presidency of St. Vincent, who now holds the position of president within the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
After the conclusion of the 2023 European Union-Community of Latin America and the Caribbean (EU-CELAC) Summit, a joint declaration was issued by the member states of the Community of Latin America and the Caribbean (CELAC) and the European Union.
The aforementioned statement lays the groundwork for fostering collaboration between the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the nations comprising the European Union (EU) in order to promote and participate in collective endeavors aimed at achieving mutually beneficial development goals.
The agreement reached through the CELAC deliberations led by St. Vincent and the Grenadines is anticipated to bolster the nation’s status as an emerging diplomatic power in the southern hemisphere.
