Foreign relations of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

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Administrative divisions (parishes)
Foreign relations

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines maintains close ties to the US, Canada, and the United Kingdom, and cooperates with regional political and economic organizations such as the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and CARICOM. St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organization of American States, and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). Saint Vincent is also the smallest nation ever to be on the United Nations Security Council.[1]

In May 1997, Prime Minister Mitchell joined 14 other Caribbean leaders and U.S. President Bill Clinton during the first-ever U.S.-regional summit in Bridgetown, Barbados. The summit strengthened the basis for regional cooperation on justice and counternarcotics issues, finance and development, and trade.

Saint Vincent is a transshipment point for South American illicit drugs destined for the US and Europe.

Diplomatic relations

List of countries which Saint Vincent and the Grenadines maintains diplomatic relations with:[2]

# Country Date
1  Barbados 27 October 1979
2  Canada 27 October 1979
3  Guyana 27 October 1979[3]
4  United Kingdom 27 October 1979
5  United States 27 October 1979
6  South Korea 28 October 1979
7  Saint Lucia 1979[4]
8   Switzerland 1979[5]
9  Japan 15 April 1980
10  Brazil 24 May 1980[6]
11  Germany 12 December 1980
12  Belgium 1980
13  Iraq 1980
14  Israel January 1981[7]
15  Colombia 17 March 1981
16  North Korea 3 April 1981
17  Netherlands 8 April 1981
—  Republic of China 15 April 1981
18  India 20 April 1981[8]
19  Belize 21 September 1981
20  Venezuela 29 October 1981
21  Italy 30 October 1982
22  France 5 November 1982[9]
23  Saint Kitts and Nevis 19 September 1983[10]
24  Argentina 4 October 1983
25  Uruguay 13 June 1985
26  Denmark 19 September 1985
27  Dominican Republic 26 September 1985
28  Australia 31 January 1986
29  Peru 5 May 1986
30  Spain 12 July 1986
31  Thailand 9 December 1986
32  Morocco 10 August 1988
33  Paraguay 22 June 1989
34  Ecuador 1 August 1989
35  Honduras 2 August 1989
36  Chile 7 September 1989[11]
37  Suriname 10 October 1989[11]
—  Holy See 17 April 1990
38  Mexico 31 July 1990
39  Austria 29 October 1990
40  Nicaragua 28 June 1991
41  Sweden 2 April 1992
42  Guatemala 4 May 1992
43  Cuba 26 May 1992
44  Costa Rica June 1992
45  El Salvador 8 June 1992
46  Marshall Islands 28 June 1992
47  Slovenia 11 November 1993
48  Indonesia 30 November 1993
49  Croatia 7 October 1994
50  Portugal 12 April 1995
51  South Africa 1 September 1995
52  Vietnam 18 December 1995
53  Poland 16 May 1996
54  Czech Republic 1996
—  Sovereign Military Order of Malta February 1997[12]
55  Greece 13 August 1997[11]
56  Slovakia 9 December 1998[11]
57  Singapore 19 February 1999
58  Philippines 11 October 2000
—  Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (frozen) 14 February 2002[13]
59  Turkey 4 April 2002
60  Belarus 24 April 2002
61  Russia 17 September 2002[14]
62  North Macedonia 15 May 2003
63  Romania 22 May 2003[11]
64  Azerbaijan 23 May 2003[11]
65  Maldives 27 May 2003
66  Bulgaria 11 September 2003
67  Ethiopia 16 February 2004
68  Iceland 24 May 2004
69  Uganda 27 July 2004
70  Malta 10 December 2004
71  Armenia 17 December 2004[11]
72  Hungary 23 May 2005
73  Libya 2 December 2005
74  Panama 17 July 2006
75  Cyprus 2 August 2006
76  Latvia 25 August 2006
77  Estonia 13 October 2006
78  Lithuania 5 February 2007
79  Algeria 7 February 2007
80  Burkina Faso 20 February 2007
81  Botswana 22 February 2007
82  Liberia 2 May 2007
83  Niger 31 May 2007
84  Mali 11 June 2007
85  Cape Verde 13 June 2007
86  Mauritius 18 June 2007
87  Tunisia 2 July 2007
88  Finland 11 September 2007
89  Luxembourg 26 September 2007
90  Iran 13 July 2008
91  Ghana 1 August 2008
92  Djibouti 7 August 2008
93  Senegal 23 September 2008
94  Comoros 3 October 2008
95  Malaysia 11 November 2008[15]
96  Monaco 12 February 2009
97  United Arab Emirates 20 February 2009
98  Bosnia and Herzegovina 19 March 2009
99  Gambia 2 May 2009
100  Cambodia 12 January 2010
101  Andorra 30 May 2010
102  Georgia 22 June 2010[11]
103  Montenegro 8 November 2010
104  Egypt 16 November 2010
105  Moldova 29 April 2011
106  Solomon Islands 4 May 2011
107  Serbia 26 May 2011
108  Mongolia 13 October 2011
109  Tuvalu 19 September 2012
110  Bahrain 28 September 2012
111  Kazakhstan 21 November 2012
112  Kuwait 8 January 2013[11]
113  Fiji 15 April 2013
114  Sri Lanka 15 April 2013[11]
115  Ireland 10 December 2013[16]
116  New Zealand 14 August 2014[17]
117  Brunei 27 May 2015[11]
—  State of Palestine 26 September 2016
118  Qatar 21 March 2017
119  Seychelles 26 May 2017
120    Nepal 27 September 2017
121  Tajikistan 18 December 2017[11]
122  Oman 1 April 2019[11]
123  San Marino 24 September 2019[18]
124  Bolivia 25 September 2019
125  Ukraine 25 September 2019
126  Kyrgyzstan 26 September 2019
127  Namibia 5 December 2019
128  Kenya 12 August 2020[19]
129  Rwanda 9 November 2021[11]
130  Burundi 24 November 2021[20]
131  Ivory Coast 28 January 2022[11]
132  Angola 30 March 2022[21]
133  Uzbekistan 10 May 2022[11]
134  Sierra Leone 12 April 2023[22]
135  Benin 3 October 2023[11]
136  Saudi Arabia 11 October 2023[11]
137  Palau 21 May 2024[23]
138  Pakistan 3 June 2024[24]
139  Zambia 24 September 2024[25]
140  Antigua and Barbuda Unknown
141  Bahamas Unknown
142  Dominica Unknown
143  Grenada Unknown
144  Haiti Unknown
145  Jamaica Unknown
146  Liechtenstein Unknown
147  Nigeria Unknown[26]
148  Trinidad and Tobago Unknown

Bilateral relations

Country Formal Relations Began Notes
 Argentina 1983
 Australia
  • Australia is represented in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines by its High Commission in Trinidad and Tobago.[28]
  • Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
 Belize 1981
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on September 21, 1981.[29]
  • Both countries are members of CARICOM.
 Botswana 2007
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on February 22, 2007.[27]
  • Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
 Canada 1979
 Republic of China (Taiwan) 1981
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1981.[31] Saint Vincent and the Grenadines maintains an embassy in Taipei while Taiwan is represented by its embassy in Kingstown.
 Cuba

St. Vincent and the Grenadines maintains close relations with Cuba, which provides a number of scholarship and other exchange programs for Vincentians, particularly in the field of healthcare.

 Cyprus 2006
 Denmark

Denmark is represented in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines by its embassy in Mexico City and an honorary consulate in Kingstown.[33]

 Dominica

Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations, of the Organization of American States and of the Caribbean Community.

 Finland 1976-01-30
  • Finland is represented in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines through a roving ambassador.[34]
  • Finland has an honorary consulate in Kingstown.[35]
  • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is represented in Finland through its embassy in London.[36]
 Grenada

Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations, of the Organization of American States and of the Caribbean Community.

 Guyana
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on October 27, 1979.[37]
  • Both countries are members of CARICOM.
 Haiti

As a member of CARICOM, St. Vincent and the Grenadines strongly backed efforts by the United States to implement UN Security Council Resolution 940, designed to facilitate the departure of Haiti's de facto authorities from power. Saint Vincent agreed to contribute personnel to the multinational force, which restored the democratically elected government of Haiti in October 1994.

 Iceland 2004
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on May 27, 2004.[38]
  • Iceland is represented in Saint-Vincent-and-the-Grenadines by its Mission to the United Nations in New York City, United States.[39]
 Ireland 2013

Ireland is represented in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines through its embassy in Washington DC, United States.[40][41]

 India See India–Saint Vincent and the Grenadines relations
 Maldives 2003
 Marshall Islands 1993

Both countries established diplomatic relations on January 28, 1993.[43]

 Malta 2004
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on December 10, 2004.[44]
  • Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
 Mexico July 31, 1990 See Mexico–Saint Vincent and the Grenadines relations
  • Saint Vincent and the Grenadines does not have an embassy accredited to Mexico.
  • Mexico is accredited to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from its embassy in Castries, Saint Lucia and maintains an honorary consulate in Kingstown.[45]
 New Zealand
 Panama 2006
 Solomon Islands 2011-05-04
 South Africa 1995
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations on September 1, 1995.[51]
  • Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
 South Korea 1979-10-28

The establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Korea and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines began on October 28, 1979.[52]

The Republic of Korea is represented in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines by its embassy in Trinidad and Tobago.

 Spain 1986 See Saint Vincent and the Grenadines–Spain relations
  • Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1986.
 Suriname

Both countries are full members of the Organization of American States and of the Caribbean Community.

  Switzerland 1985

Both countries established consular relations in 1985 and diplomatic relations in 2001.[53]

 Trinidad and Tobago
 Turkey July 27, 2004[54] See Saint Vincent and the Grenadines–Turkey relations
 Uganda 2004-07-27
 United Kingdom 27 October 1979 See Saint Vincent and the Grenadines–United Kingdom relations

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines established diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom in 27 October 1979.[57] Both countries are Commonwealth Realms.

The UK governed Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as part of the Windward Islands colony from 1833 to 1979, when Saint Vincent and the Grenadines achieved full independence.

Both countries share common membership of the Caribbean Development Bank, the Commonwealth, the International Criminal Court, the World Trade Organization, and the CARIFORUM–UK Economic Partnership Agreement.[60]

 United States See Saint Vincent and the Grenadines–United States relations
 Venezuela

Saint Vincent protests Venezuela's claim to give full effect to Aves (Bird) Island, which creates a Venezuelan EEZ/continental shelf extending over a large portion of the Caribbean Sea.

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Smallest State to Ever Lead the UN Security Council: St. Vincent and the Grenadines". November 2, 2020.
  2. ^ "Diplomatic and Consular List" (PDF). pp. 104–112. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  3. ^ "Countries with which Guyana has Establishment Diplomatic Relations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 7, 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  4. ^ "List of countries with which Saint Lucia has established Diplomatic Relations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 1, 2018. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  5. ^ "Bilateral relations Switzerland–St. Vincent and the Grenadines". eda.admin.ch. Retrieved March 10, 2024.
  6. ^ "SÃO VICENTE E GRANADINAS" (in Portuguese). p. 15. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  7. ^ "Israel's Diplomatic Missions Abroad: Status of relations". Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  8. ^ Union Government, Weekly, 1981-05-30, CSL, Ref. CSL. Government of India. May 30, 1981. p. 718.
  9. ^ "Lisete Chronologique des Ambassadeurs, Envoyés Extraordinaires, Ministres Plénipotentiaires et Chargés D'Affaires de France à L'Étranger Depuis 1945" (PDF) (in French): 94. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. ^ "Diplomatic Relations". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saint Kitts and Nevis. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Diplomatic relations between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and ..." United Nations Digital Library. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  12. ^ "Diplomatic Relations Register (4)". January 24, 2014. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  13. ^ "Joint Statement: Recognition of the SADR by the Government of St. Vincent and The Grenadines". ARSO - Association de soutien à un référendum libre et régulier au Sahara Occidental. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
  14. ^ "Russia – St.Vincent and the Grenadines". Archived from the original on August 26, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
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  23. ^ "Honored to witness the signing of joint communiqués on establishment of diplomatic relations between #Palau and #StKitts & #Nevis, as well as Palau and St. Vincent & the Grenadines #SVG. We celebrate stronger ties among our valued allies as we pursue greater prosperity for all". May 21, 2024. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
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