Prime Minister Hon. Gaston Browne has instructed Antigua and Barbuda’s top diplomat in Washington, Sir Ronald Sanders, to dispatch a diplomatic note to the US State Department, regarding the threat of possible restrictions for citizens traveling to the United States.
The diplomatic note is seeking clarification on whether Antigua and Barbuda will be included on a list of 22 countries on a draft ‘yellow list’. A recent article in the New York Times cites unnamed US officials providing information on a draft for tiered travel restrictions, with countries placed in red, orange and yellow categories. Countries in the yellow tier, which also include St Lucia, Dominica and St Kitts and Nevis, would be given 60 days to address unspecified deficiencies, or their citizens could face travel restrictions into the United States by being placed into the red or orange categories.
Antigua and Barbuda has moved proactively on the issue, despite reports by the New York Times that the draft could see several changes before being presented to the White House.
Prime Minister Hon. Gaston Browne emphasized during a national address on Saturday that there is no objective justification for Antigua and Barbuda to be placed on such a list.
