Parliament on Tuesday approved a resolution authorizing the government to continue negotiations with the United States over the possible transfer of third-country nationals while establishing a 12-point framework that gives Antigua and Barbuda complete discretion over whether any individual is accepted.
The resolution, tabled by Prime Minister Gaston Browne after a day-long debate, makes clear that Parliament has not approved any agreement with the United States and has not authorized the transfer of any individual. Instead, it empowers the government to continue negotiations within strict conditions designed to protect the country’s sovereignty, national security, legal obligations and financial interests.
Among the principles approved by lawmakers, the government is authorized to continue discussions with Washington in a spirit of friendship and cooperation while giving full regard to Antigua and Barbuda’s sovereignty, laws, security, absorptive capacity and national interests.
The resolution rejects any standing, automatic or open-ended programme under which the United States could transfer predetermined numbers of third-country nationals to Antigua and Barbuda. Instead, every proposed transfer must receive the government’s prior approval and be assessed individually.
It also provides that only the number of individuals the government determines the country can responsibly accommodate may be considered, taking into account public resources, national security, domestic and international law, available funding and the country’s absorptive capacity.
Before anyone can be accepted, the government must receive sufficient information regarding the individual’s identity and suitability, while written agreements must be in place covering documentation, funding, accommodation, legal status and long-term responsibility. The government also retains the right to refuse entry to any individual whose documentation is incomplete or inaccurate and require that person’s immediate return at no cost to Antigua and Barbuda.
The resolution further requires that all costs associated with any future arrangement—including accommodation, healthcare, security, administration and any onward movement or return—be paid through funding arrangements agreed in advance so that taxpayers bear no financial burden. It also preserves the government’s right to suspend or terminate any arrangement whenever it considers doing so necessary to protect the country’s sovereignty, security, laws or national interests.
Its final provision states that adoption of the resolution does not constitute parliamentary approval of any draft operating procedures currently under discussion with the United States and does not, by itself, authorize the transfer of any person to Antigua and Barbuda.
Presenting the resolution, Browne said it was intended to establish “clear principles and safeguards” while preserving Antigua and Barbuda’s ability to negotiate with the United States without compromising its independence.
“It affirms that Antigua and Barbuda retains complete sovereign discretion. It requires full vetting, full funding, complete documentation and clear legal status for any person who may be considered. It preserves our right to suspend or terminate any arrangement should circumstances warrant,” the prime minister said.
Browne argued that the government had sought to strike a balance between protecting Antigua and Barbuda’s sovereignty and maintaining an important bilateral relationship with the United States.
“We value our friendships, but we also value our independence and the quality of life of our people,” he said. “Cooperation must be fair. Cooperation has to be balanced and it must be consistent with our national interests.”
During the debate, Browne also reiterated that Antigua and Barbuda would rather face U.S. visa restrictions than agree to receive criminals.
“If we were faced with an option of not taking criminals and to have visa restrictions, we’ll go for the visa restrictions because accepting criminals will destroy our country,” he said, adding that the government’s proposal would only allow consideration of individuals whose sole offence involved immigration or visa violations.
The prime minister further disclosed that Antigua and Barbuda intends to seek up to US$75,000 for each individual accepted under any future arrangement, arguing that the country’s higher cost of living justifies greater financial support than reportedly offered to other participating states.
Attorney General Sir Steadroy Benjamin told Parliament that the resolution should not be interpreted as approval of a final agreement because none currently exists.
“The White Paper is not presented as a complete agreement, nor is this House being asked to approve a conclusive operating agreement. None exists,” Benjamin said.
He said Parliament’s role was to establish the principles under which the Executive may negotiate while leaving the detailed negotiations to the government.
Benjamin also revealed that Antigua and Barbuda accepted five of its own nationals deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement between March 2025 and June 2026, saying that obligation differs fundamentally from accepting citizens of another country.
“Every nation has a duty to receive its own citizens,” he said, noting that no similar obligation exists regarding third-country nationals.
Foreign Affairs Minister E.P. Chet Greene defended the government’s decision to engage Washington, arguing that listening to a proposal should not be mistaken for accepting it.
“We engage because responsible governments do,” Greene said. “They do not make important decisions in ignorance. They do not refuse to listen before they know what is being proposed. And they do not confuse engagement with agreement.”
Greene said Antigua and Barbuda rejected key elements of the original U.S. proposal because they failed to adequately protect the country’s interests. Rather than ending discussions, he said, the government submitted extensive counterproposals that narrowed the categories of persons who could be considered, reduced proposed numbers, strengthened documentation requirements and required the United States to assume all financial obligations.
“That is not capitulation. That is negotiation. That is the essence, the true form, of diplomacy,” Greene said.
He also praised Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States, Sir Ronald Sanders, for leading negotiations in Washington under the direction of Prime Minister Browne, saying Sanders had firmly defended the country’s legal, financial and security interests throughout the discussions.
Tourism Minister Charles Fernandez urged Parliament to consider the broader economic implications of the negotiations, saying the government could not ignore the country’s dependence on the United States as its principal tourism market.
Fernandez noted that tourism accounts for approximately 60 to 65 percent of Antigua and Barbuda’s gross domestic product and warned that any deterioration in relations with Washington could have severe economic consequences.
“If we lose our tourism, 60, 65 percent of GDP [would go] down the drain,” he said.
Describing the issue as “a balancing act,” Fernandez said the government was seeking an agreement that protects the country’s dignity and sovereignty while safeguarding the tourism industry and the thousands of livelihoods that depend upon it.
Not all members were persuaded.
Barbuda MP Trevor Walker argued that Antigua and Barbuda was negotiating from a position of weakness because of existing U.S. visa restrictions and questioned whether the country possessed sufficient leverage.
“Antigua and Barbuda don’t have no cards,” Walker said, while calling for broader public consultation and a unified CARICOM position on the issue. He also questioned why Parliament had been presented with an unsigned memorandum rather than an executed agreement and urged the government to explain the circumstances surrounding U.S. visa restrictions affecting Antiguans and Barbudans.
Government members rejected those criticisms, maintaining that negotiations had already resulted in significant revisions to the original U.S. proposal and that the resolution gives Antigua and Barbuda a clear parliamentary mandate while preserving complete sovereign control over any future decision.
With the resolution now adopted, the Browne administration has authority to continue negotiations with the United States, but any future arrangement must remain consistent with the 12 principles approved by Parliament, including case-by-case approval, complete government discretion, full U.S. funding, written legal safeguards and the continued right of Antigua and Barbuda to reject, suspend or terminate any agreement whenever it determines doing so is in the national interest.
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Let them in I already have work set up for them
Having this issues been discussed in parliament, establishing a way to move forward is the first step of acceptance in my view. Ministers you do not speak for the broader public.. quit making decisions that benefits only your pockets & not the people of Antigua and Barbuda. We do not wish to accept not even one, not even a single illegal alien.
Having this issues been discussed in parliament, establishing a way to move forward is the first step of acceptance in my view. Ministers you do not speak for the broader public.. quit making decisions that benefits only your willingness to maintain political power rather respecting & protecting the sovereignty of the people of Antigua and Barbuda. We do not wish to accept not even one, not even a single illegal alien.
We as Antiguans want a bold Government a proud Government, a Government who is not afraid of standing up for it’s people moreso a prime minister who’s willing to die for his believe & not surrendering our pride & dignity, a prime minister who will never bend to suit any demands from a first world dictatorship regime.
A law breaker is someone who is defined as engaging in unlawful activities..So yes, 99% of these people are law breakers..Duh. there is no way around it
Does these people Antigua government have a different definition of the term, because I don’t get this word play trying to downplay who these people that the US are rejecting from their system are.
Stop acting like these people are saints GB..if they were that straight as you may think, the US would have accepted their application for Asylum or residency after they go through their vetting process..but instead they are rejected, why, because many of these applicants cannot be verified or have unverified information as to who they are.
So tell us how can you verify that they are not law breakers where they came from originally?
Remember, the US is not throwing everyone out of their country, they are rejecting those who are unverified until they can get more verification as to who they really are..so everyone that the US sent to any country is a risky proposition. The US doesn’t want blood on their hands, do you, and that’s why the US is not sending many of them back to their original country, because for many of these asylum cases, it’s a guaranteed death sentence, and the US doesn’t want to be seen as sanctioning the death of Asylum seekers, so they choose this TCN option to appease the human rights organization..that’s what happening here. So please stop running around the bush as to what the US is really asking here.
Please learn from the Antigua Airways debacle please..when these people are sent here, they will try every which way to get back to the US, Mark my word, because that’s where they want to be, the US, just like the Africans..So how are you going to safeguard these people attempting what the Africans did..well you can’t, so just stop with this word play about not accepting any criminals.
They are all law breakers, duh. No way around that, none.
The most reactive political party in the Caribbean region has just passed a resolution to try and restrict the US Third-Party transfers into the country.
This agreement is akin to shutting the barn door after the horse has bolted.
All this should have been done once Trump commenced his second term of office, he was always going “deport and dump” immigrants and illegals. The question was always where?
These performances in Parliament was only a show for the Antiguan public…
WHAT THE HELL…! …PASSAGE OF RESOLUTION TO ‘…NEGOTIATE? …US UNDESIRABLES?
A RESOLUTION OF FARSITY: OR …PARLIAMENTARY MOCKERY? …RESOLUTION IN FUTILITY
***
This has gone ‘…BEYOND AMAZING.’
***
WHY…?
The citizenry may have been hoping: that
(a) ‘…THE PARLIAMENTARY RESOLUTION’ MAY HAVE BEEN OUTRIGHT REJECTION:of
(b) …THE UNITED STATES ‘…BULLYING TACTICS’: in
(c) …FOISTING ‘…UNDESIRABLES: upon
(d) …THE INDIGENT AND ECONOMICALLY-STRUGGLING: but
(e) …SOVEREIGN:
(f) …INDEPENDENT: and
(g) …DEMOCRATIC ‘…108 AND 62 SQUARE MILES’ TWIN-ISLAND NATION: of
(i) …ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA.’
***
The ‘…RESOLUTION TO NEGOTIATE,’ seems more: of
(a) ‘…MOCKERY: and
(b) …FARSITY: than
(c) …NEGOTIARY STRENGTH TO OBJECT/REJECT.’
***
WITHOUT WHICH, IS A ‘…RESOLUTION IN FUTILITY.’
***
WHY…?
NO NATION:
(i) ‘…REPRESENTING ITSELF AND ITS INTERESTS: with
(ii) …ANY OTHER NATION: needs
(a) ‘…NO PARLIAMENTARY RESOLUTION SO TO DO:
***
Should a ‘…THIRD PARTY NATION,’ BE SO ENGAGED: then
(i) ‘…THAT WHICH MAY BE NEEDED WAS: simply
(ii) …AN ADMINISTRATIVE-CABINET DECISION: thereby
(iii) …PROVIDING AUTHORITY SO TO ‘…CONDUCT NEGOTIATIONS:’ on
(iv) …BEHALF OF THE ENGAGING/CONTRACTING GOVERNMENT.’
***
FACING REALITY
***
NOW:
(a) ‘…WHETHER OR NOT A ‘…MOCKING PARLIAMENTARY RESOLUTION TO NEGOTIATE: with
(b) …THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: with
(i) ‘…ITS POWERFUL AND MILITARY MIGHT: and
(ii) …ECONOMIC WHERE-WITH-ALL:
(iii) …PARLIAMENTARY OR NON-PARLIAMENTARY:
(iv) …NO RESOLUTION HAS POSITIONED THE NATION BETTER: than
(a) …GRENADA:
(b) …DOMINICA:
(c) …ST. KITTS:
(d) …ST. LUCIA: nor
(e) …ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES.’
***
THESE TINY NATIONS- LIKENED TO PEOPLE DESTINED TO HELL,THEY SHALL ALL ‘..BUCKLE,’
***
ALL SHALL ACCEPT THE ‘…US DECLARED UNDESIRABLES’ (euphemistically called :
(i) ‘…DEPORTEES: and
(ii) …THIRD COUNTRY NATIONALS.’
***
WHAT THE HELL…!
***
WELL, …FUSS AND FRET: …GRUMBLE AND QUARELL:
***
ONE BARREL:
ALL ROLLING DOWN THE SAME HILL IN ‘…ONE BARREL.’
***
With all that was said by Gaston Browne what makes him think the US is going to be honest about the character of these people coming here, you and your Administration are accustomed to getting duped. Your people are going to destroy this Country and when another Administration gets in power your idiotic supporters will blame the New Administration. Not one of these CRIMINALS is bringing anything worthwhile. What I do know Antigua and Barbuda is Fuc’kd
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