Foreign relations of Saint Lucia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Saint Lucia maintains friendly relations with the major powers active in the Caribbean, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and France. Saint Lucia has no extant international disputes, aside from tension resulting from the island's status as a transit point for South American drugs destined for the United States and Europe.

Saint Lucia's Permanent Representative (or ambassador) to the United Nations as of February 22, 2017, was Cosmos Richardson, who was still in office as of January 2018.[1]

History[edit]

Saint Lucia participated in the American-led invasion of Grenada in 1983, sending members of its Special Services Unit into active duty. It was subsequently one of eight countries to cast a vote against a United Nations General Assembly motion condemning the invasion.[2]

As a member of CARICOM, St. Lucia strongly backed efforts by the United States to implement UN Security Council Resolution 940, designed to restore democracy to Haiti. St. Lucia agreed to contribute personnel to the multinational force which restored the democratically elected government of Haiti in October 1994.

St. Lucia participated along with 14 other Caribbean nations in a summit with US President Bill Clinton in Bridgetown, Barbados, in May 1997. The summit was the first-ever meeting in the region between the U.S. and Caribbean heads of government, and strengthen the basis for regional cooperation on justice and counternarcotics, finance and development, and trade issues.

Bilateral relations[edit]

List of countries which Saint Lucia established diplomatic relations with:

# Country Date
1  United Kingdom 23 February 1979[3]
2  Barbados 23 February 1979[4]
3  Canada 23 February 1979[5]
4  Guyana 23 February 1979[6]
5  Jamaica 23 February 1979[7]
6  South Korea 23 February 1979[8]
7  Mexico 17 May 1979[9]
8  United States 11 June 1979[10]
9  Cuba 23 August 1979[11]
10  North Korea 13 September 1979[12]
11  France 14 September 1979[13]
12  Venezuela 14 September 1979[14]
13  Romania 15 November 1979[15]
14  Argentina 13 December 1979[16]
15  Brazil 21 December 1979[16]
16  Bahamas 1979[17]
17  Dominica 1979[17]
18  Haiti 1979[17]
19  Israel 1979[17]
20  Italy 1979[17]
21  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1979[17]
22  Trinidad and Tobago 1979[17]
23  Ecuador 1 January 1980[16]
24  Germany 8 January 1980[18]
25  Japan 11 January 1980[19]
26  Cyprus 24 July 1980[16]
27  Greece 18 November 1980[16]
28  Suriname 18 November 1980[16]
29  Belgium 1980[17]
30  Iraq 1980[17]
31  Netherlands 1980[17]
32  Belize 21 September 1981[20]
33  Sweden 1981[17]
34  Colombia 18 March 1982[21]
35  Denmark 20 December 1982[22]
36  Australia 1982[23]
37  Grenada 1982[17]
38  India 1982[17]
39  Bangladesh 12 May 1983[24]
40  Saint Kitts and Nevis 19 September 1983[25]
41  Antigua and Barbuda 1983[17]
 Taiwan 13 January 1984[26]
42  Oman 28 March 1984[16]
 Holy See 1 September 1984[27]
43  Peru 1985[17]
44  Spain 2 May 1986[16]
45  Morocco 9 March 1988[16]
46  Seychelles 13 July 1988[16]
47  Dominican Republic 1988[17]
48  Thailand 4 April 1989[16]
49  Uruguay 1 September 1989[16]
50  Norway 1990[17]
51  Chile 21 March 1991[28]
52  Costa Rica 1991[17]
54  Guatemala 1 April 1992[16]
54  Malaysia 9 October 1992[29]
55  Marshall Islands 1992[17]
56  Nicaragua 1992[17]
57  Paraguay 18 June 1993[16]
58  Singapore 15 January 1994[30]
59  Indonesia 2 February 1994[31]
60  El Salvador 2 February 1994[32]
61  Panama 10 July 1995[33]
62  Czech Republic 6 August 1996[16]
63  Portugal 19 September 1996[16]
64  South Africa 12 December 1996[16]
65  Brunei 1996[17]
 China (suspended) 1 September 1997[34]
66  Croatia 10 December 1997[16]
67  Austria 1999[17]
 Sovereign Military Order of Malta 1999[17]
68  Poland 24 May 2000[16]
69  North Macedonia 24 August 2000[16]
70  Belarus 25 August 2000[16]
71  Armenia 17 October 2000[16]
72  Ireland 2000[17]
73  Saudi Arabia 2000[17]
74  Russia 19 April 2004[16]
75  Ethiopia 3 August 2004[16]
77  Slovenia 29 August 2005[16]
76  Turkey 2005[17]
78  Tajikistan 5 October 2005[16]
79  Hungary 7 October 2005[16]
80   Switzerland 2005[17]
81  Iceland 7 May 2006[35]
82  Latvia 21 June 2006[16]
83  Lithuania 19 March 2009[16]
84  Estonia 23 September 2009[16]
85  Finland 23 September 2009[16]
86  Luxembourg 23 September 2009[16]
87  Slovakia 23 September 2009[16]
88  Libya 30 October 2009[16]
89  Georgia 25 February 2010[16]
90  Azerbaijan 11 March 2010[16]
91  Malta 11 March 2010[16]
92  Albania 14 July 2010[16]
93  Egypt 19 July 2010[16]
94  Montenegro 24 September 2010[16]
95  Ukraine 24 September 2010[36]
96  United Arab Emirates 29 November 2010[37]
97  Kuwait 31 January 2011[16]
98  Monaco 12 May 2011[16]
 Kosovo 19 August 2011[17]
99  Maldives 2 December 2011[17]
100  Kazakhstan 5 December 2012[16]
101  Qatar 1 March 2013[16]
102  Bosnia and Herzegovina 15 April 2013[16]
103  New Zealand 17 May 2013[38]
104  Honduras 5 June 2014[39]
105  Mongolia 27 September 2014[16]
106  Mauritius 7 November 2014[17]
 State of Palestine 14 September 2015[16]
107  Fiji 27 January 2016[16]
108  Philippines 29 March 2016[16]
109  Vietnam 26 June 2018[16]
110  Gambia 25 September 2018[17]
111  Kiribati 25 September 2018[17]
112  Solomon Islands 25 September 2018[17]
113  Sri Lanka 25 June 2019[16]
114  Bolivia 26 June 2019[17]
115    Nepal 27 August 2019[16]
116  Rwanda 28 August 2019[16]
117  Namibia 29 October 2019[16]
118  Serbia 13 November 2019[17]
119  Kenya 10 December 2019[16]
120  San Marino 7 February 2020[17]
121  Bulgaria 5 November 2020[16]
122  Moldova 3 March 2021[16]
123  Cape Verde 20 September 2022[40]
124  Ivory Coast 22 September 2022[16]
125  Tuvalu 7 December 2022[16]
126  Bahrain 13 December 2022[16]
127  Algeria 19 December 2022[16]
128  Andorra 20 September 2023[16]
129  Kyrgyzstan 20 September 2023[41]
130  Liechtenstein 20 September 2023[16]
131  Sierra Leone 20 September 2023[16]
132  East Timor 8 November 2023[16]
133  Mauritania 5 December 2023[42]
134  Botswana 6 December 2023[43]
135  Samoa December 2023[44]

Bilateral relations[edit]

Country Formal Relations Began Notes
 Belize 21 September 1981
 France 14 September 1979 See France–Saint Lucia relations
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on February 22, 1979.
 India 1982 See India–Saint Lucia relations

Relations between India and Saint Lucia date back to the mid-19th century when both countries were British colonies. The first Indians in Saint Lucia arrived on 1 May 1857 as indentured workers on board the Palmyra. Thirteen ships transported indentured labourers from India to Saint Lucia in the following decades.[48] The last ship carrying Indian indentured workers, the Volga, arrived on the island on 10 December 1893. In total, nearly 4,500 Indians were brought to Saint Lucia, excluding those who died during the voyage.[49] About 2,075 workers returned to India, while the rest remained in Saint Lucia or emigrated to other Caribbean nations such as Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana.[50] The last indenture contracts expired in 1897, and by the end of the 19th century, Saint Lucia had a population of 2,560 free Indians. Many Indians who had completed their indenture periods were unable to return home as they did not have sufficient funds to do so. The Indians that remained in Saint Lucia are the origin of the Indo-Saint Lucian community.[51]

The Embassy of India in Paramaribo, Suriname is concurrently accredited to Saint Lucia.[52] Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Kenny D. Anthony held bilateral discussions on the sidelines of UN General Assembly in New York on 25 September 2015. Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy made a visit to Saint Lucia on 3–6 October 2016. Rudy held bilateral talks with Acting Prime Minister Guy Joseph, Minister of External Affairs Sarah Beaubrun Flood, Senator Hermanglid Francis, the Minister for Home Affairs, Justice and National Security, the Minister of Commerce, Industrialists, Diaspora Associations, Academicians and other senior Saint Lucian government officials.[53]

Indo-Saint Lucians or Indian Saint Lucians are Saint Lucians of Indian ancestry, descended from the Indians who came to Saint Lucia in the 19th century as indentured workers. As of 2013, people of Indian descent are a minority ethnic group in the country, accounting for 2.4% of the country's population. An additional 11.9% of the country is multiracial, predominantly of Indian and African descent.[54] They have completely assimilated with the local population and have little familiarity with Indian culture. Some Indo-Saint Lucians have held high offices such as Cabinet Ministers.[52] As of December 2016, around 250 Indian citizens reside in Saint Lucia. Most members of the community are doctors and other professionals, while a few are businessmen engaged in imports, trading and running duty-free shops.[53]

 Ireland 2000
  • Ireland is representative to Saint Lucia from its embassy in Brasilia, Brazil
  • Saint Lucia is representative to Ireland from its embassy in Havana, Cuba
 Mexico 17 May 1979 See Mexico–Saint Lucia relations
  • Mexico has an embassy in Castries.[55]
  • Saint Lucia is accredited to Mexico from its embassy in Washington, D.C., United States.
 Trinidad and Tobago 22 February 1979 See Saint Lucia-Trinidad and Tobago relations
 Taiwan 7 May 1984, severed 29 August 1997, Restored 30 April 2007

St. Lucia had official diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan) for about 13 years, but switched recognition to the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1997. On 25 April 2007, the Premier of the Republic of China Su Tseng-chang, announced that St. Lucia and the ROC would resume formal diplomatic relations.[56] On 1 May 2007, St. Lucia regained diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan).[57] Within a few days, the People's Republic of China suspended diplomatic relations.[58] On 4 June 2015, St. Lucia opened its embassy in Taipei, its first embassy in Asia.[59]

 Turkey 25 May 2005 See Saint Lucia–Turkey relations
 United States 11 June 1979 See Saint Lucia–United States relations

Multilateral relations[edit]

Saint Lucia is a member of several international organizations, including the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organization of American States, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

ACCT (associate), ACP, ALBA, C, Caricom, CDB, CELAC, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAS, OECS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Saint Lucia Press Release About New UN Ambassador. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
  2. ^ Richard Bernstein, "U.N. ASSEMBLY ADOPTS MEASURE 'DEEPLY DEPLORING' INVASION OF ISLE," New York Times, 3 November 1983. The other countries were the United States, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, El Salvador, Israel, Jamaica, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
  3. ^ Commonwealth Yearbook, 1991. Stationery Office/Tso. 1991. p. 20.
  4. ^ "LIST OF COUNTRIES WITH WHICH BARBADOS HAS ESTABLISHED DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS". Archived from the original on 13 August 2017.
  5. ^ Linwood, DeLong (January 2020). "A Guide to Canadian Diplomatic Relations 1925-2019". Retrieved 26 June 2023.
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  8. ^ "Countries & Regions". Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  9. ^ Informe de labores - Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (in Spanish). Mexico. Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores. 1979. p. 17.
  10. ^ "A Guide to the United States' History of Recognition, Diplomatic, and Consular Relations, by Country, since 1776: Saint Lucia". Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  11. ^ "Memoria Anual 2015 Page 24 (MFA Cuba)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2022-01-11.
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  14. ^ Libro amarillo correspondiente al año ...: presentado al Congreso Nacional en sus sesiones ordinarias de ... por el titular despacho (in Spanish). Venezuela. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. 2003. pp. 528–529.
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  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm "Diplomatic relations between Saint Lucia and ..." United Nations Digital Library. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj "List of countries with which Saint Lucia has established Diplomatic Relations". Archived from the original on 16 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Völkerrechtliche Praxis der Bundesrepublik Deutschland im Jahre 1980" (PDF) (in German). p. 538. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
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  24. ^ Near East/South Asia Report No. 2792. 1 August 1983. p. 79. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
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  26. ^ Latin America Report. Vol. 29. [Executive Office of the President], Federal Broadcast Information Service, Joint Publications Research Service. 1984. p. 108.
  27. ^ "Diplomatic relations of the Holy See". Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  28. ^ De la reinserción a los acuerdos: la política exterior chilena en 1991 (in Spanish). FLACSO. 1992. p. 83.
  29. ^ Daily Report: East Asia - Volumes 92-200. The Service. 1992. p. 58.
  30. ^ "Diplomatic & consular list". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  31. ^ "Dubes RI Serahkan Credentials, Indonesia-Saint Lucia Berkomitmen Tingkatkan Hubungan Bilateral" (in Indonesian). 21 February 2018. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  32. ^ "REGISTRO DE FECHAS DE ESTABLECIMIENTO DE RD" (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  33. ^ "RELACIONES DIPLOMÁTICAS DE LA REPÚBLICA DE PANAMÁ" (PDF). p. 195. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  34. ^ "中国同圣卢西亚的关系". www.mfa.gov.cn (in Chinese). Retrieved 28 December 2023.[dead link]
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  36. ^ "Украина и Сент-Люсия установили дипломатические отношения (in Russian)". 28 September 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
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  41. ^ "On September 20, 2023 on the margins of the 78th session of the UNGA, the Minister Zheenbek Kulubaev and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saint Lucia Alva Romanus Baptiste signed a Joint Communiqué on the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries". 21 September 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  42. ^ "La Mauritanie et Sainte-Lucie conviennent d'établir des relations diplomatiques". Agence Mauritanienne d'information (in French). 6 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  43. ^ "Botswana establishes diplomatic relations with Mongolia, Tajikistan and Saint Lucia". Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Botswana in Facebook. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  44. ^ "Saint Lucia and the Independent State of Samoa establish diplomatic relations, with the joint communiqué signed by the PRs H.E Menissa Rambally and H.E Fatumanava Paolelei Luteru of and current AOSISChair". 14 December 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  45. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-12-30. Retrieved 2016-12-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  46. ^ "Embassy of Saint Lucia in Paris, France".
  47. ^ "Embassy of France in Saint Lucia".[permanent dead link]
  48. ^ Hyacinth-Gideon, C. (29 July 2014). Saint Lucia. Author House. ISBN 9781496984838. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  49. ^ "Caribbean island of St. Lucia observes Indian Arrival Day". Business Standard India. 14 May 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  50. ^ "St. Lucia's Indian Arrival Day". Repeating Islands. May 7, 2009. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  51. ^ Harmsen, Jolien (2002). "THE EAST INDIAN LEGACY IN ST LUCIA". slucia.com. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  52. ^ a b "Saint Lucia". Embassy of India, Paramaribo. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  53. ^ a b "India-Saint Lucia Relations" (PDF). Ministry of External Affairs (India). December 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  54. ^ "CIA - The World Factbook -- Saint Lucia". CIA. Retrieved 2013-05-13.
  55. ^ "Embassy of Mexico in Saint Lucia".
  56. ^ "St. Lucia dumps PRC for Taiwan", The Taipei Times, 2007-04-26
  57. ^ "「台聖復交/加勒比海島國 人口17萬 出過兩位諾貝爾獎主」"., ET today, 2007/05/01 10:37
  58. ^ "China suspends ties with St Lucia". Archived from the original on 2007-05-08. Retrieved 2007-05-05., ChannelNewsAsia, 5/5/07
  59. ^ "St. Lucia opens embassy in Taiwan; first in Asia - Focus Taiwan".
  60. ^ a b "Relations between Turkey and St. Lucia".
  61. ^ "Embassy of Saint Lucia in the United States".
  62. ^ "Embassy of the United States in Barbados".