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Saint Lucia’s UN Ambassador presents CARICOM Statement on Iraq to Security Council

NEW YORK 19th February 2003 – Saint Lucia’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Ambassador Earl Stephen Huntley, has told the United Nations Security Council, that the member states of the Caribbean Community are opposed to the use of armed force against Iraq at a time when it is clear that diplomatic efforts have not yet been exhausted and the UNMOVIC and IAEA inspectors are reporting some progress and requesting more time to complete their work of disarming Iraq.

Ambassador Huntley, who is the current Chairman of the Committee of CARICOM Ambassadors in New York, addressed the Security Council Wednesday evening on behalf of CARICOM Member States as the Security Council yesterday began an open debate on the situation regarding Iraq. Ambassador Huntley told the Council that the Heads of Government of CARICOM, who had met in Port of Spain last weekend, had declared that it was essential for all states to support the work of the UN inspectors and were urging the Government of the United States and its military allies to exercise restrain in their approach to this complex issue.

CARICOM Heads of Government however appealed to Iraq to cooperate fully with the UN inspectors and to fulfill its commitments to the United Nations and the international community so that there could be a peaceful resolution to the situation.

According to Ambassador Huntley, CARICOM believed that a war with Iraq would have disastrous consequences for the world and particularly for small developing states like the Caribbean who would bear a disproportionate burden of those consequences. Ambassador Huntley concluded his statement by declaring the Caribbean Community‘s conviction that in a modern and interdependent world “diplomacy and dialogue presented the most enlightened approach to building understanding and resolving conflicts.”

The United Nations Security Council continues its open debate on Iraq Thursday morning.

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