In a public pre-Cabinet briefing held Monday, Saint Lucia’s External Affairs Minister Alva Baptiste has confirmed that the Caribbean nation turned down four of 10 third-country nationals proposed by the United States for transfer under a bilateral temporary relocation agreement, marking the first test of the arrangement between the two nations.
Following the rejection, six approved migrants arrived in Saint Lucia last week. Baptiste disclosed that the new arrivals hold citizenship from nations across Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, though their exact nationalities remain undisclosed for privacy. Of the six currently in the country, two have already expressed a desire to return to their home countries, with the Saint Lucian government now coordinating with their respective national embassies to coordinate this voluntary repatriation process. The remaining four have stated that they wish to stay in Saint Lucia for the immediate future.
To clarify the terms of the agreement for the public, Baptiste repeatedly emphasized that Saint Lucia maintains full, unconditional discretion to vet and reject any individual the U.S. puts forward for relocation, pushing back against early misinformation that the nation had surrendered this sovereign authority. “In this first case, Saint Lucia did not accept all ten individuals that the US had submitted,” he noted during the briefing.
A third-country national, by definition, refers to an individual deported from one country to a third state that is not their country of origin. Under the two-year temporary agreement between Washington and Castries, Saint Lucia can accept up to 10 third-country nationals per three-month period. Baptiste stressed that the arrangement is not a permanent resettlement program, but a temporary measure to support people facing precarious circumstances.
Addressing widespread public concern over potential risks to national security and public safety that circulated in local discourse following the transfer, Baptiste confirmed that comprehensive government background checks found no evidence any of the six arrivals posed a threat. “They are certainly not criminals as has been portrayed in some circles,” he said, adding that the group are people who have faced extraordinary hardship related to their immigration status in the U.S. and are now seeking a chance to rebuild their lives with temporary safe haven.
The transfer and reception process unfolded without incident, Baptiste confirmed, with multiple Saint Lucian government agencies — including the ministries of External Affairs, Health, Equity, and National Security — coordinating alongside international partners to manage the arrival. All program costs are covered by the U.S. government, with additional operational and logistics support provided by international partners, including assistance for voluntary repatriation. Migrants will remain housed under arrangements managed by the Saint Lucian government and its partners, with voluntary repatriation remaining an open option for any individual who chooses to return home at a later date.
Baptiste also pushed back against criticism that the arrangement would strain the small developing nation’s existing social and economic resources. “We are fully cognisant that as a developing country we have real social and economic challenges, and this government does not minimise them, but our responsibility to the people of Saint Lucia and our responsibility to uphold the principles of human dignity are not competing principles. We can and must do both,” he said.
The first transfer came after months of negotiations between Saint Lucia and U.S. officials to assess the Caribbean nation’s capacity to participate in the program.
Speaking alongside Baptiste on Monday, Saint Lucia Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre — who also currently serves as Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) — clarified the regional bloc’s position on the agreement. Pierre confirmed that while the arrangement was discussed at the regional level, CARICOM member states retain full sovereign authority to make independent decisions on whether to participate in such programs.
“In terms of political policies, CARICOM member states make their own decisions. There was discussion; people discussed the agreement, but it was left to individual governments to take the decisions that they felt were right and proper,” Pierre said.
CARICOM leaders have previously raised collective concerns about the capacity of small island developing states to manage third-country national transit arrangements. They have stressed that any such agreements must not disrupt regional security or divert critical public resources and services away from member states’ own citizens.
Operationally, the United Nations’ International Organisation for Migration manages on-the-ground implementation of the program in participating countries, while individual national governments retain full authority over all core decisions including admission, legal status, protection, and removal of relocated individuals.