Their joint statement marks the region’s first collective response since the European Commission wrote to all five states demanding that their programs be phased out by June 1, 2028.
Dominica’s Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, chaired the meeting, which was attended by Philip J. Pierre of Saint Lucia, Gaston Browne of Antigua & Barbuda, Dickon Mitchell of Grenada, and Dr. Terrance Drew of Saint Kitts & Nevis. Godwin Friday of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, whose government plans to launch its own CBI program this year, also participated.
Issued through Dominica’s Office of the Prime Minister, the statement commits the leaders to “a high-level mission to Brussels at the earliest appropriate opportunity” to engage directly with the presidents of the European Commission and the European Council, as well as the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. A coordinated outreach effort to “key European capitals” will proceed in parallel.
Foreign ministers, ministers responsible for CBI, ambassadors, and senior officials were instructed to coordinate closely and to present “a unified regional position in all engagements with European counterparts.”
Replacement Revenues as the Price of Any Wind-Down
The leaders said that CBI programs “have become an important pillar of economic resilience and development financing for small island developing states.” The statement attributes program revenues with funding climate resilience, disaster recovery, infrastructure, and fiscal stability, while reducing dependence on what it describes as “unsustainable borrowing.”
That framing leads directly to their central demand. “Any transition affecting a significant source of national development financing must be accompanied by a comprehensive framework that safeguards economic stability, protects development gains already achieved, and supports the creation of sustainable alternative sources of financing,” the leaders state.
Talks with Brussels should also address “enhanced development cooperation, strategic investment partnerships, climate resilience financing, economic diversification initiatives,” and other measures capable of “facilitating any future arrangements that may be agreed between the parties.”
That position echoes Antigua & Barbuda’s complaint last week that no EU proposal to date is “quantified, binding, or explicitly framed as replacement revenues.”
What the Statement Does Not Say
The text makes no mention of the June 1, 2028 date, the Schengen area, or the interim vetting measures the Commission’s letters reportedly require by September 2026. It also contains no reference to Browne’s statement that Antigua & Barbuda “will not be pressured” into a unilateral phase-out.
The tone remains conciliatory throughout. The leaders “welcome the European Commission’s commitment to continued engagement and technical dialogue” and say any future framework should be guided by “proportionality, partnership, shared responsibility, and sustainable development.”
They add that solutions should reflect “the legitimate policy objectives of the European Union” together with the development needs of small island states. Their concluding sentence expresses confidence that “balanced and durable solutions can be achieved.”
Read as a negotiating document, the statement challenges the terms of a transition, not the premise of one.
Six Months of Escalation
Brussels’ revised visa suspension mechanism entered into force on December 30, 2025, adding the operation of investor citizenship programs to the grounds for suspending a country’s visa waiver.
In its eighth report under the mechanism, published that same month, the Commission stated that Caribbean programs constitute a suspension ground in themselves and urged tighter vetting “pending the discontinuation” of the programs.
Letters signed by Magnus Brunner, the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, followed on June 25 and offered a 24-month transition period. Antigua & Barbuda was the first to confirm receipt publicly, stating that all five CBI states received similar correspondence.
The responses will feed into the Commission’s next visa suspension mechanism report, scheduled for December 2026. In the meantime, the leaders emphasize a reform record covering due diligence, information sharing, and transparency, pointing to the regional regulator they created as evidence of “harmonized regulation, enhanced compliance, and continuous improvement” across the five programs.
Friday’s presence in Roseau carries its own significance. Although the joint statement lists him separately from the five “participating” states, the leader planning to enter the CBI market attended the region’s first summit on the EU’s demand to exit it.
The NATLAN will promptly inform you of any new developments. If you have any questions or require an individual assessment of your situation, you may schedule a consultation with our company.
Dominica’s Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit, chaired the meeting, which was attended by Philip J. Pierre of Saint Lucia, Gaston Browne of Antigua & Barbuda, Dickon Mitchell of Grenada, and Dr. Terrance Drew of Saint Kitts & Nevis. Godwin Friday of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, whose government plans to launch its own CBI program this year, also participated.
Issued through Dominica’s Office of the Prime Minister, the statement commits the leaders to “a high-level mission to Brussels at the earliest appropriate opportunity” to engage directly with the presidents of the European Commission and the European Council, as well as the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. A coordinated outreach effort to “key European capitals” will proceed in parallel.
Foreign ministers, ministers responsible for CBI, ambassadors, and senior officials were instructed to coordinate closely and to present “a unified regional position in all engagements with European counterparts.”
Replacement Revenues as the Price of Any Wind-Down
The leaders said that CBI programs “have become an important pillar of economic resilience and development financing for small island developing states.” The statement attributes program revenues with funding climate resilience, disaster recovery, infrastructure, and fiscal stability, while reducing dependence on what it describes as “unsustainable borrowing.”
That framing leads directly to their central demand. “Any transition affecting a significant source of national development financing must be accompanied by a comprehensive framework that safeguards economic stability, protects development gains already achieved, and supports the creation of sustainable alternative sources of financing,” the leaders state.
Talks with Brussels should also address “enhanced development cooperation, strategic investment partnerships, climate resilience financing, economic diversification initiatives,” and other measures capable of “facilitating any future arrangements that may be agreed between the parties.”
That position echoes Antigua & Barbuda’s complaint last week that no EU proposal to date is “quantified, binding, or explicitly framed as replacement revenues.”
What the Statement Does Not Say
The text makes no mention of the June 1, 2028 date, the Schengen area, or the interim vetting measures the Commission’s letters reportedly require by September 2026. It also contains no reference to Browne’s statement that Antigua & Barbuda “will not be pressured” into a unilateral phase-out.
The tone remains conciliatory throughout. The leaders “welcome the European Commission’s commitment to continued engagement and technical dialogue” and say any future framework should be guided by “proportionality, partnership, shared responsibility, and sustainable development.”
They add that solutions should reflect “the legitimate policy objectives of the European Union” together with the development needs of small island states. Their concluding sentence expresses confidence that “balanced and durable solutions can be achieved.”
Read as a negotiating document, the statement challenges the terms of a transition, not the premise of one.
Six Months of Escalation
Brussels’ revised visa suspension mechanism entered into force on December 30, 2025, adding the operation of investor citizenship programs to the grounds for suspending a country’s visa waiver.
In its eighth report under the mechanism, published that same month, the Commission stated that Caribbean programs constitute a suspension ground in themselves and urged tighter vetting “pending the discontinuation” of the programs.
Letters signed by Magnus Brunner, the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, followed on June 25 and offered a 24-month transition period. Antigua & Barbuda was the first to confirm receipt publicly, stating that all five CBI states received similar correspondence.
The responses will feed into the Commission’s next visa suspension mechanism report, scheduled for December 2026. In the meantime, the leaders emphasize a reform record covering due diligence, information sharing, and transparency, pointing to the regional regulator they created as evidence of “harmonized regulation, enhanced compliance, and continuous improvement” across the five programs.
Friday’s presence in Roseau carries its own significance. Although the joint statement lists him separately from the five “participating” states, the leader planning to enter the CBI market attended the region’s first summit on the EU’s demand to exit it.
The NATLAN will promptly inform you of any new developments. If you have any questions or require an individual assessment of your situation, you may schedule a consultation with our company.