Barbados to join Petrocaribe in new form
Barbados
Barbados is to sign the Petrocaribe II oil deal with Venezuela “in the near future”, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Jerome Walcott has confirmed.
The move ends an 18-year-long diplomatic stalemate between Bridgetown and successive leftist regimes in Caracas over the regional oil procurement pact that offers member states oil supplies on a concessionary financial agreement.
The deal appears to be a byproduct of Bridgetown’s hosting of the resumption of talks that on Tuesday culminated in a series of guarantees for free and fair elections for a new president in Venezuela next year, potentially paving the way for a possible ease in sanctions imposed by the United States.
The talks resulted in concessions between the Maduro administration and the Opposition Unitary Platform of Venezuela – a partial agreement on the promotion of political rights and electoral guarantees for all and a partial agreement for the protection of the vital interests of the nation.
Walcott said Tuesday’s signing also has significant implications for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), which has benefited from the Petrocaribe oil deal since 2005.
He said Barbados was hoping it would be able to sign on to an agreement that would not be the deal in its current form, but “something different”.
“The conclusion of these negotiations and what they portend, has major significance not only for the people of Venezuela but also for all Caribbean states where there is recognition of the Caribbean Sea as a zone of peace,” said Walcott.
“Now that the process has been concluded and Venezuela moves towards regaining its economic independence, we are looking forward in the very near future to a Petrocaribe II arrangement.
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