THE most recent decision by the European Union (EU) in respect to the blacklisting of several nations is indeed their prerogative, but by the same token it is not only individuals who err but corporations and nations sometimes fall into that category.
Based on the EU’s decision, many countries have responded negatively and amongst the most important countries are South Korea, United Emirates and Tunisia, to name but a few. There are countries that have the ways and means to respond to these premature decisions, but unfortunately, small nations within the Caribbean have little or no leverage but to genuinely negotiate with the EU on a pragmatic basis.
The sad part of these turn of events is based on the fact that both Delaware and Nevada within the US have taken the lion’s share of the offshore business and the EU has no recourse in dealing with the US in any meaningful fashion, hence their decision to focus on the weaker countries.
Tunisia, for example, has engaged high level discussions with Mr. Emmanuel Macron – the new French president — to explain the haste and downside of their decision. The Caribbean should, therefore, follow the path of Tunisia in seeking such a meeting of reconciliation and buying time before a final decision is made.
Michael Chastanet