Antigua and Barbuda rejects US deportee plan as OECS seeks regional stance

Antigua and Barbuda’s prime minister, Gaston Browne, said the country will not accept the United States’ proposal to take up to 120 third‑country deportees a year, offering instead to host no more than ten annually. The U.S. request, aimed at shifting responsibility for non‑citizen deportations, has sparked debate across the Caribbean.

Leaders of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) are coordinating a unified response, citing concerns over limited resources, security and sovereignty. St Vincent and the Grenadines’ prime minister Goodwin Friday warned the proposal could have “serious implications” for their economies and peoples. Jamaica, Guyana and Dominica are also in talks with Washington, and the issue is set for further discussion at the CARICOM summit in St Lucia in early July.