Iran calls for boost of ties with Association of Caribbean States

The meeting occurred on the sidelines of the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Caribbean Ministers held in Havana on Friday.

During the meeting, the Iranian envoy referred to the common historical experiences between Iran and Caribbean states and pointed to the problems caused by the colonial powers for independence-seeking states such as Iran and the Caribbean countries.

He pointed to Iran’s geographical situation and said both Iran and Caribbean states are suffering similar environmental problems including climate change, coastal and sea pollution.

Secretary-General of the Association of Caribbean States for her part underlined the union’s commitment to making convergence among regional states and peace in this region.

She pointed to Iranian nation efforts during the history to protect its sovereignty and independence and noted that there are lots of grounds for cooperation between Tehran and ACS.

The official said that countering environmental problems resulted from climate change is a priority for the ACS.

Iran attended the 22nd Meeting of the Council of Caribbean Ministers upon an invitation of Cuba which chairs the union.

Venezuela is expected to take the rotating presidency of the ACS from Cuba.

According to the official website of the Association of Caribbean States, the union is an organization for consultation, cooperation and concerted action in trade, transport, sustainable tourism and natural disasters in the Greater Caribbean.

Its Member States are Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.

Its Associate Members are Aruba, Curacao, (France on behalf of French Guiana, Saint Barthelemy and Saint Martin), Guadeloupe, Martinique, Sint Maarten, (The Netherlands on behalf of Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius ), Turks and Caicos.

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