US
official: Govt not ignoring C'bean
By
Roxanne Stapleton
Trinidad
Express
Port
Spain
Petroleumworld.com
09 10 06
THE
ASSISTANT Secretary of the US Department of Energy,
Karen Harbert, yesterday vehemently denied that
the Bush Administration was ignoring dire concerns
of Caribbean states.
However, Jamaica's Foreign Affairs
and International Trade Minister, Anthony Hylton,
stressed that this was not the feeling among Caricom
states, keeping in line with stark sentiments recently
expressed by Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister
Patrick Manning.
Also, Barbadian Energy and Public
Utilities Minister Elizabeth Thompson agreed that
the Caribbean now more than ever needed all the
help it could get from the United States to address
its energy concerns.
Speaking at the Caribbean-Central
American Action Regional Trade and Investment Forum
which was held yesterday at the Hilton Port of Spain,
Harbert vociferously defended her Government.
"The US values tremendously
our relationship with the Caribbean - all countries
in the Caribbean and values tremendously our relationship
with Trinidad and Tobago," she said.
"We have seen some concerns
by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago and
we look forward to meeting with him to discuss these
concerns - but a measure of commitment is us being
here today and expressing our solidarity in addressing
the energy challenge... we are always open to hearing
the concerns of the leaders of the Caribbean and
we look forward to the discussions here," Harbert
said.
But Jamaica's Hylton clearly did
not share the views expressed by Harbert, as he
was in support of statements levelled against Washington
three days ago by Manning.
"I would simply say that Prime
Minister Manning is not incorrect in saying that
these concerns and a number of concerns have been
raised by Caricom Heads of Government over a long
period of time and we are not satisfied that they
have been addressed in the way that I think is important
to address, not only our energy sustainability,
but as Prime Minister Manning said some security
issues as well."
Asked if he was satisfied with Harbert's
insistence that her presence here was a sign of
her Government's commitment, Hylton seemed unmoved,
instead offering another hard hitting comment.
"In the Caribbean we've never
been interested in window dressing.
Hylton noted that Petrocaribe is
"working extremely well for Jamaica",
he added: "The objectives that we thought were
there from the beginning, they are delivering on
those objectives. The crude is flowing to the refinery,
the financing arrangements are in place and the
benefits are real."
Dominican officials also voicing
their deep frustrations in the wake of chronic economic
turmoil in that Caricom island state, said that
both the US and the rest of the region has a "duty
and obligation to ensure that this energy crisis
does not escalate into riots and strife and violence
(in Dominica)".
The Dominicans intimated that not
only does poverty continue to grow with its energy
crisis, but they continue to suffer the effects
of brain drain and are faced with the possibility
of its citizens turning to human and drug trafficking,
"which has serious implications not only for
the region, but for the US as well," they insisted.
Trinidad Express
Friday, September 8th 2006
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