NO PROGRESS ON U.S.-CARICOM INITIATIVE ON ILLICIT ARMS

UNCLAS GEORGETOWN 000835 SIPDIS WHA/CAR - BNICHOLS WHA/FO - GSNIDLE PM/WRA - SPICO SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETTC PARM PREL CARICOM SUBJECT: NO PROGRESS ON U.S.-CARICOM INITIATIVE ON ILLICIT ARMS TRAFFICKING REF: A) WHA/CAR - Georgetown e-mail B) STATE 40149, C) GEORGETOWN 258 ¶1. (SBU) Per ref (A) request, EmbOff informally demarched CARICOM Assistant Secretary General for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Colin Granderson on the status of the U.S.-CARICOM joint statement on illicit arms trafficking, agreed to at the Nassau Ministerial in March. Granderson said the CARICOM Secretariat had forwarded the draft statement to the member foreign ministries and has yet to receive clearance. He did not specify which member states were holding up approval. EmbOff reiterated that the statement is intended to be a political expression of common concern, not a legally binding initiative at this point. Granderson did not offer a timeframe for CARICOM approval of the draft text, nor was he able to offer suggestions in response to EmbOff's inquiry if the USG can do anything to get the process moving again. THOMAS