00:00After four days of deliberations from February 24th to 28th,
00:04CARICOM leaders are projecting confidence in the strength of the regional body.
00:08CARICOM Chair and Prime Minister of St. Kitsin Nevis, Dr. Terence Andrews, says
00:12differences of opinion are inevitable within an organization made up of sovereign nations.
00:18He maintains that the true test of integration is not in the absence of disagreement,
00:23but the maturity to resolve issues in the interest of the community.
00:28I had the opportunity to visit the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago before this.
00:34She was very gracious to me.
00:35She welcomed me with open arms.
00:38She took me to her office.
00:40She and I sat to talk.
00:41She took me to Parliament.
00:42She made an excellent statement and CARICOM and her recommitment.
00:46Of course, just like everybody else, you might need to have some things work through.
00:51And then, you know, so she was very gracious in all of that.
00:54So I would say that the organization is strong.
00:58Jamaica's Prime Minister, Dr. Andrew Holness, also addressed the issue,
01:02noting that member states operate in different political and economic contexts.
01:07Holness says regional cooperation does not require uniformity,
01:11but strategic coordination that allows countries to pursue national interests while advancing collective goals.
01:17It really means that the organization is far more sophisticated and has far more positions that it can take
01:27that if strategically coordinated can lead to the greater good and greater benefit of the organization.
01:36So I think the conventional, unidimensional view on how integration movements should operate does not hold in this current state.
01:49And we should get used to it.
01:51Our commentators and our intellectuals and so forth should get used to it and guide the public in this way.
01:57Leaders say the organization's ability to accommodate diverse positions reflects its resilience,
02:02as it marks 50 years of regional integration.
02:05Aksha Galston, TV6 News.
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