TOP INTERVIEWS Interview with Mr. EDWIN CARRINGTON Secretary General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) European Union, Latin America and Caribbean Summit Madrid 17-18th of May 2002 Caricom states are a significant part of Latin America but due to their relative small size and population, they seem somewhat on the fringe of the process bilateral integration between Latin America and the European Union. What is your impression? If you look at the configuration of the Caribbean, you will see that they are small countries which together add 20 million people if you add the Dominican Republic, Haiti and the English speaking Caribbean. The rest of Latin America makes up hundreds of millions. In a sense you could understand why the tendency is to give emphasis to Latin America as it speaks for itself. But the Caribbean has another window of relationship with the European Union through the Cotonou Agreement which Latin America does not have, so this is another window of opportunity for the Caribbean and there are many people who feel that what you do not get under one front, we will get by the other and that both must be added together in order to add both and get an idea of how important the Caribbean is. This way you will realise that the Cotonou agreement gives it closer relations to the European Union than Latin America. I think we have to make that judgement. But the fact that you are fighting on two fronts, Cotonou and EU, doesn't that make it lose perspective? Well, this question has been raised. We put it this way, given the change in the international climate it would be imprudent of us to stay away from an arrangement with Latin America. Why? We are currently negotiating a free trade treaty in the Americas and furthermore, we are part of the Americas and therefore cannot stay away from it. Secondly, we are dismantling the European ACP relationship in terms of its preferences and the other one is beginning to be established. Hopefully we have growing trade relationships with Europe. Is interest in the Commonwealth being diluted in preference of the Spanish speaking Latin America? I have not found any diminishing interest in the Commonwealth. Caribbean countries still hold dearly to the Commonwealth linkage. They attend the Caribbean Heads of State summit, the Commonwealth through the UK has started a new initiative in the region for the UK Caribbean forum and we recently had the third meeting in Guyana so I think that there has been no diminishing interest. The question is: can we really win? Note: WINNE cannot be held responsible for the content of unedited transcriptions.