Last Updated on April 12, 2023, 3:48 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The Premier of Nevis and Leader of the Concerned Citizens Movement, Mark Brantley, recently took to his social media to share some of his most prominent achievements in the capacity of The Minister of Foreign Affairs in the government of St Kitts and Nevis.
The Premier of Nevis took to his social media to confess that his time as Foreign Minister of St Kitts and Nevis remains one of his fondest memories. Notably, CCM Leader Mark Brantley spearheaded the “diplomatic efforts” of St Kitts and Nevis abroad for 7
The tenure of Premier Mark Brantley started from 2015 to 2022. Through this time, the government was able to:
1. Purchase premises and open a High Commission in Ottawa, Canada, the only OECS country with such high-level representation in Canada then.
2. Purchase a Chancery building to house our Embassies and residence in Washington, DC. St Kitts and Nevis now own its establishment in the US Capital.
3. Open an Embassy in the United Arab Emirates.
4. Expand our diplomatic footprint significantly, formalizing diplomatic relations with some 48 new countries, including 18 in Africa.
5. Expand our visa-free travel network by adding some 35 countries, of which 13 are in Africa.
6. Making the St Kitts Nevis passport the most powerful in the Region based on the number of countries we can access without a visa. This added significantly to the success of our CBI programme.
7. Secured scholarships for training Kittitians and Nevisians in Morocco, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Indonesia, Romania and Turkey.
8. Negotiated with Canada to have an itinerant biometrics collection framework where Canadian immigration officials come to St Kitts and Nevis to collect biometrics of those seeking Canadian visas rather than our people having to bear the high cost of travel to Barbados or Trinidad. Premier Mark Brantley asserted that This initiative, first mooted by the government in Ottawa, has also benefitted other countries in the Region.
9. Negotiated with the US to be included in the visa interview waiver so that qualified citizens of SKN no longer have to travel to Barbados to renew their US visas.
10. For the first time in history hired competent Nevisians to join the diplomatic corps representing our country. Nevisians have joined their Kittitian counterparts in Basseterre, New York, DC, London and Canada as we harness the best and the brightest to represent us diplomatically.
11. Get invited by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with him and a short list of Caribbean countries in Jamaica.
12. Addressed the UN General Assembly in New York in 2017.
13. Under Mark Brantley, the government Revived Diplomatic Week and provided advice and support to other Caricom countries seeking to emulate our efforts in SKN.
14. Led media efforts on the Windrush issue in London after the groundwork laid by our High Commissioner in London, Dr Kevin Isaac, and his Barbadian counterpart Guy Hewitt. Due to our collective efforts, PM Therea May apologized in Parliament, and Home Secretary Amber Rudd apologized in Parliament and later resigned. Due to the steps of Premier Mark Brantley, they were able to launch a compensation scheme for victims of this scandal.
15. Raised the profile of SKN regionally and internationally and avoided any hint of scandal or diplomatic row during my tenure.
16. Cemented ties with our best friend Taiwan and secured the first visit of a Taiwan President to Nevis.
17. Secured two desalination plants, one for St Kitts and Nevis from the UAE.
18. Secured free vaccines during the Covid 19 pandemic, first from India and later from the USA.
Accordingly, Premier Mark Brantley extended his heartfelt gratitude to Permanent Secretary Kay Bass for her exceptional leadership of the Ministry during my tenure and all of our Ambassadors, High Commissioners and our small but brilliant cohort of Councillors and Foreign Service Officers. Due to their tireless efforts, the smallest Nation in the Region punches well above its weight.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
