Frank, open discussions with VP Harris “confronted big issues” – Pres Ali

…says discourse beneficial for bilateral relations, regional development

Stressing the importance of the United States as a strategic partner for Guyana and the Caribbean, President Dr Irfaan Ali on Wednesday had a teleconference with US Vice President Dr Kamala Harris during which they had discussions that were beneficial not only to the two countries but the entire Caribbean Community (Caricom) region.

This is according to the Head of State following the discourse on Wednesday in Washington, DC.
“This conversation with the Vice President and President started at the Summit of the Americas. It has advanced rapidly. So, I will say that our conversation today was refreshing. It was beneficial both to Guyana and the US and Caricom. It confronted the big issues, it was very frank and open, very respectful and it outlines the vision and supports the vision that I’ve been talking about,” he said in a statement issued by the Press and Publicity Unit of the Office of the President.
President Ali noted that such an exchange was necessary for advancing the relations between the two countries as it fostered understanding and allowed for the opportunity to share perspectives. This, he emphasised, is an important aspect of strengthening US-Guyana relations.

“The first thing that we need to do to advance any relationship is to have conversations, to understand each other, to share our perspective on things. They may be different, but unless you share it, you cannot understand the commonality or understand where each other is coming from,” the Guyanese Leader stated.
It was further noted that during Wednesday’s conversation, President Ali and Vice President Harris reviewed the progress made from meetings held at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles, including the work of three short-term joint US-Caribbean committees that President Biden and the Vice President launched to produce concrete, near-term solutions on areas of immediate concern for Caribbean leaders, in food security, energy security, and access to development financing.

Welcomed progress
Vice President Harris welcomed the progress made in these three areas and reiterated the interest of the United States in addressing the unique vulnerabilities and urgent economic challenges facing Caribbean nations. She thanked President Ali for his leadership regarding the Region’s food security.
The two leaders also discussed the recent commitment of the United States to provide $28 million for food security assistance to Caribbean nations and other ways the US could support the Caribbean in this area.
Regarding a sustainable energy future, they discussed the implementation of the US-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030 (PACC 2030) as well as efforts to accelerate PACC 2030’s energy infrastructure development timeline by incorporating these lines of effort into the work of the US-Caribbean short-term energy and finance committees.
Vice President Harris said she looked forward to continuing her collaboration with President Ali in promoting inclusive democracy, economic development, and security for all Guyanese. She underscored the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to strengthening US partnerships with the Caribbean.

More aggressive
In fact, this strengthening of US relations with Guyana and the Caribbean was emphasised by the Guyanese Leader during another event on Wednesday. President Ali participated in a discussion hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Americas Program on this topic.
During that forum, he indicated that he has been pushing recently for the US to be more aggressive and to take up a more strategic space in the Region.
“One of the important discussions at the Summit of the Americas was the priority the Region occupies in the foreign policy and mindset of the US. And there is a great view in the Region, and this was before the Summit of the Americas, that there has been some amount of neglect for the Caricom region by the US. That was officially raised. After the Summit of the Americas, I can officially say there has been an enormous move to rectify this,” the Head of State said.
This, he added, is reflective in the committees that were established to look at important issues of food security, climate change, energy security, and financing within the Region. These committees are co-chaired by the US and various Caricom nations, including Guyana, and have already made progress on their work.

US’s renewed focus on priority
President Ali expressed his confidence in the US re-igniting focus on the Region and the aggressive continuance of this. In fact, he noted that this is already happening with his visit to Washington, DC this week during which several historic events have taken place including Wednesday’s signing of the $2 billion Memorandum of Understanding with the US EXIM Bank.
“This week has all been about that conversation – redefining that relationship, looking at the strategic outlook of Guyana and aligning that with the various actors here in the US. We’re trying to harmonise what we do…
“We’re working also not only from a Government-to-Government and agency-to-agency perspective but we’re looking to see how we can catalyse the Private Sector into it, get the Private Sector more interested so that they can build and be part of the opportunity. But importantly also, how we build and link the relationship between the two Private Sectors so we transfer knowledge, technology – the sharing of resources and so on,” the President highlighted.
According to the Guyanese Leader, sessions such as the CSIS Americas Program are crucial in presenting Guyana and the opportunities in the country to foreign investors and other stakeholders so that they have a better understanding on what is happening here and how they can be a part of Guyana’s developmental agenda.

USAID
Meanwhile, President Ali on Wednesday also led his delegation to meet with representatives from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in the US capital.
The visiting Head of State and the Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programme, Isobel Coleman discussed ways of strengthening their partnership.
Like Guyana, USAID is also keen to address food security, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Ali was accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd; the Foreign Secretary, Robert Persaud and Guyana’s Ambassador to the US, Samuel Hinds. (G8)