The Philadelphia Tribune is reporting that the U.S. ends interview waivers for uncooperative islands in the Caribbean specifically Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
According to the edition of September 14th, 2018, Under Trump’s leadership, the U.S. government has refused to extend an interview waiver for visa renewals for the three countries.
The visa Interview Waiver Program allows eligible foreigners who are applying to renew a non-immigrant visa stamp (for vacation, medical treatment, study, etc.) to request that the standard requirement of an in-person interview at a U.S. consulate or embassy be waived.
According to several Caribbean newspapers, most people in the region are perceiving this to be a response to the fact that government officials from these countries refused to back a U.S.-sponsored anti-Venezuela resolution submitted at the Organization of American States early this year.
As reported by the Associated Press, Trump has been on the bullhorn since last summer trying to rally his top aides to gather up the troops and invade Venezuela in an effort to overthrow the government of President Nicolas Maduro, which he views as spiraling out of control.
The three island nations that have received backlash from the U.S. are trying to understand what they can do about being singled out.
The cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda met and then released a statement that they believe the “exclusion is connected to the friendship which the three states have developed with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.”
Furthermore, they stated that “the decision by these three states to adhere to the principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of member states has been identified as the principal reason.”
During a radio interview, a Dominican attorney pointed out that politicians in Washington, D.C., are patting St. Lucia on the back for supporting the anti-Venezuelan resolution, even though it is on a blacklist for violating human rights.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines has uttered some of the same sentiments.
According to the Edition, what the current administration fails to realize is that diplomacy is critical to maintaining the peace and democracy that people in the Western Hemisphere enjoy.
The United States, Latin-America, Cuba and the Caribbean countries have always had a supportive relationship.
Original Publication Philadelphia Tribune
