Delivering a landmark address at the 2026 Diplomatic Encounter and Annual Ambassadors’ Meeting held last Friday at the Sir John E. St. Luce Finance and Conference Centre, Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs E.P. Chet Greene laid out a clear, non-partisan mandate for the nation’s entire diplomatic cohort, explicitly directing all local and overseas envoys to center the welfare of the Antiguan and Barbudan public above loyalty to any sitting administration or political party. Addressing a packed room of ambassadors, high commissioners, honorary consuls and frontline diplomatic staff, Greene framed diplomatic postings across key global hubs including Washington D.C., London, Beijing, New York, Madrid and Havana as public trust mandates rather than perks for partisan favor. “Your posting is not a sinecure. It is a mandate,” he emphasized, rejecting the longstanding regional practice of treating diplomatic appointments as patronage rewards, and calling on envoys to uphold strict standards of dedication, integrity and unwavering focus on advancing national interests. A core pillar of Greene’s directive called on the diplomatic corps to build cross-border partnerships robust enough to survive domestic political transitions, rather than tying bilateral alliances to the fate of individual ruling parties. He further pushed back against the marginalization often faced by small island developing states on the global stage, urging envoys to reject external pressure from larger, more powerful nations and staunchly defend Antigua and Barbuda’s inherent right to chart its own independent development trajectory. “Do not allow our small size to be mistaken for silence or insignificance,” he told attendees. The minister also prioritized deepening collective solidarity with regional blocs including CARICOM, the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, and the broader Commonwealth, framing these alliances as critical bulwarks for small state collective bargaining power. While celebrating recent high-profile diplomatic wins for the nation, including its successful 2024 hosting of the Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States and the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Greene warned against complacency, urging diplomats to leverage the global visibility generated by those events to advance longstanding national priorities: climate justice, colonial reparations, and equitable access to concessional development financing. Convened under the official theme “Sovereign Resilience and Global Reform. Small State, Global Stakes: Diplomacy for Justice and Influence,” the summit featured a keynote address from Saint Lucia’s Minister for External Affairs Alva Baptiste, bringing cross-regional perspective to discussions of small state diplomatic strategy. Greene closed his address with a passionate appeal to the assembled envoys, noting that Antigua and Barbuda’s global reputation rests entirely on their conduct, professionalism, and willingness to advocate fiercely for their home nation. “I implore you to represent them with the dignity, integrity, ferocity and the excellence they deserve,” he concluded.
FM Greene urges diplomats to put country before government and party
