BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (AP):
CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES will violate Caribbean Community rules if they take advantage of an oil pact they signed with Venezuela promising fuel on easy terms, the leader of Barbados said.
Thirteen Caribbean countries joined PetroCaribe, an initiative begun by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, to help them withstand the shock of record-high oil prices.
But according to a 1973 treaty, the Caribbean Community Secretariat must certify that the pact does not put other members at a disadvantage.
Both Barbados and Trinidad said the treaty puts them at a disadvantage and they have refused to join.
Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur on Tuesday said the pact only hurts the interests of Trinidad, which provides 50,000 barrels of oil per day to the region, and suggested that PetroCaribe be amended to allow Trinidad to process Venezuelan oil.
None of the signatories has yet taken advantage of the pact. But if any do, they will violate community rules, because the secretariat has not approved it, Arthur said.
Under PetroCaribe, countries must pay market prices, but could pay for a portion up front and finance the rest over 25 years at low interest rates. Countries could also pay partly with services or goods such as rice, bananas or sugar.
Last month, Barbados Energy Minister Anthony Woods said his country would acquire too much debt if it joined. Moreover, Barbados was already receiving petroleum products at discounted rates from Trinidad, he said.
If the pact is amended, the Caribbean Community Secretariat will still have to authorize Trinidad to import the Venezuelan oil. Once authorized, Trinidad would not have to pay the 20 percent community tariff on imported goods, Arthur indicated.
Manning has been mandated by the Caribbean heads of government to hold talks with Venezuela and iron out the difficulties with the pact, a secretariat spokesman told The Associated Press on condition he not be named.
High oil prices have had severe effects on Caribbean economies already weakened by the waning of the traditional banana and sugar industries.
Caribbean leaders have said PetroCaribe comes without any political strings attached, but critics say the pact will allow Chavez to expand his influence in the region and become a counterweight to the United States.
