General Assembly

Distr. GENERAL  

6 July 1998

ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH

                                                        A/53/143


General Assembly
Fifty-third session


        REQUEST FOR THE INCLUSION OF AN ITEM IN THE PROVISIONAL AGENDA
                          OF THE FIFTY-THIRD SESSION

        OBSERVER STATUS FOR THE ASSOCIATION OF CARIBBEAN STATES IN THE
                               GENERAL ASSEMBLY

     Letter dated 23 June 1998 from the representatives of Antigua and
      Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba,
     Dominica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala,
     Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Saint
       Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
      Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela to the United Nations
                      addressed to the Secretary-General


     Upon instructions from our Governments, we have the honour to
request you, pursuant to rule 13 of the rules of procedure of the
General Assembly, to include in the provisional agenda of the fifty-
third regular session of the General Assembly an item entitled
"Observer status for the Association of Caribbean States in the
General Assembly".  Pursuant to rule 20 of the rules of procedure of
the General Assembly, we attach an explanatory memorandum (see
annex I) and a draft resolution (see annex II).


(Signed)  Mr. John William ASHE       (Signed)  Mr. Carlston B. BOUCHER       
  Charge' d'affaires of the             Permanent Representative              
  Permanent Mission of Antigua and      of Barbados to the United Nations     
  Barbuda to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Maurice MOORE           (Signed)  Mr. Alfonso GAHONA            
  Permanent Representative             Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the         
  of the Bahamas to the United Nations  Permanent Mission of Belize           
                                        to the United Nations                 

(Signed) Mr. Andelfo J. GARCIA        (Signed)  Mr. Fernando BERROCAL SOTO
  Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the               Permanent Representative       
  Permanent Mission of Colombia         of Costa Rica to the United Nations   
  to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Bruno RODRI'GUEZ-PARRILLA      (Signed)  Mr. Simon Paul RICHARDS
  Permanent Representative                     Permanent Representative       
  of Cuba to the United Nations             of Dominica to the United Nations 

(Signed)  Mr. Luis LITHGOW            (Signed) Mr. Ricardo CASTANEDA-CORNEJO
  Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the               Permanent Representative       
  Permanent Mission of the Dominican      of El Salvador to the United Nations
  Republic to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Julio Armando MARTINI HERRERA  (Signed)  Mr. Samuel INSANALLY   
  Permanent Representative of Guatemala        Permanent Representative       
  to the United Nations                        of Guyana to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Robert MILLETTE                (Signed)  Mr. Pierre LELONG      
  Permanent Representative                     Permanent Representative       
  of Grenada to the United Nations             of Haiti to the United Nations 

(Signed)  Mr. Hugo NOE'-PINO              (Signed)  Miss M. Patricia DURRANT
  Permanent Representative                     Permanent Representative       
  of Honduras to the United Nations         of Jamaica to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Emanuel TELLO            (Signed) Mr.Enrique PAGUAGUA FERNA'NDEZ
  Permanent Representative                     Permanent Representative       
  of Mexico to the United Nations          of Nicaragua to the United Nations 

(Signed)  Mr. Aquilino BOYD                  (Signed)  Mr. Kevin ISAAC        
  Permanent Representative                    Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the  
  of Panama to the United Nations              Permanent Mission of St. Kitts 
                                               and Nevis to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Herbert G. V. YOUNG            (Signed)  Ms. Sonia R. LEONCE    
  Permanent Representative of Saint           Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the  
  Vincent and the Grenadines to the         Permanent Mission of Saint Lucia  
  United Nations                               to the United Nations          

(Signed)  Mr. Michel Orlando KERPENS       (Signed) Mr.George William MCKENZIE
  Charge' d'affaires of the               Permanent Representative of Trinidad
  Permanent Mission of Suriname             and Tobago to the United Nations  
  to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Norman M. MONAGAS-LESSEUR
  Charge' d'affaires a.i. of the
  Permanent Mission of Venezuela
  to the United Nations


                                      ANNEX I

                                           [Original:  English and Spanish]

                              Explanatory memorandum


     The Association of Caribbean States (ACS) came into being on
4 August 1995, date of the entry into force of the Convention
establishing the Association of Caribbean States, which had been adopted
at Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, on 24 July 1994.  The members of ACS
are Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Colombia, Costa
Rica, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada,
Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Saint Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.

     In addition, France (in respect of French Guiana, Guadeloupe and
Martinique) and the Netherlands Antilles have joined the Association as
associate members.  Participation in this capacity is open to Anguilla,
Aruba, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands,
Montserrat, Puerto Rico, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United
States Virgin Islands.

     Observer status has been granted to Argentina, Brazil, Canada,
Chile, Ecuador, Egypt, India, Italy, the Netherlands (in respect of the
Netherlands Antilles and Aruba), Morocco, Peru, the Russian Federation
and Spain.

     The following regional organizations have been granted the status of
founding observers of the ACS:  the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the
Central American Integration System (SICA), the Latin American Economic
System (SELA), and the Permanent Secretariat of the General Treaty on
Central American Economic Integration (SIECA).  The Convention also
provides for participation by social actors.

     In accordance with article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations,
the Convention was registered with the United Nations Secretariat on
1 November 1995.

     The basic purposes of the ACS are to facilitate consultation,
cooperation and concerted action in order to identify and promote the
implementation of policies and programmes seeking to:

     (a)  Harness, utilize and develop the collective capabilities of the
Caribbean region to achieve sustained cultural, social, scientific and
technological advancement;

     (b)  Develop the potential of the Caribbean Sea through interaction
among Member States and with third parties;

     (c)  Promote an enhanced economic space for trade and investment with
opportunities for cooperation and concerted action, in order to increase
the benefits which accrue to the peoples of the Caribbean from their
resources and assets, including the Caribbean Sea;

     (d)  Establish, consolidate and augment, as appropriate,
institutional structures and cooperative arrangements responsive to the
various cultural identities, developmental needs and normative systems
within the region.

     For the purpose of achieving these aims, ACS promotes among its
members the following activities:

     (a)  Economic integration, including the liberalization of trade,
investment, transportation and other related areas;

     (b)  Discussion on matters of common interest for the purpose of
facilitating active and coordinated participation of the region in the
various multilateral forums;

     (c)  Formation and implementation of policies and programmes for
functional cooperation in the above-mentioned fields;

     (d)  Preservation of the environment and the conservation of natural
resources of the region and especially the Caribbean Sea;

     (e)  Strengthening of friendly relationships among Governments and
peoples of the Caribbean;

     (f)  Consultation, cooperation and concerted action in such other
areas as may be agreed upon.

     In August 1995 the first summit of heads of State and Government of
ACS was held at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.  The Declaration of
Principles and Plan of Action adopted at this meeting identified three
sectors, tourism, trade and transport, as key areas for the creation of a
more viable economic space and the advancement of the integration process
in the Caribbean.

     Since then the Ministerial Council, permanent organ of ACS, has, for
the purpose of furthering the achievement of the aims of ACS, held three
ordinary meetings.  They have taken place, in December 1995, December
1996 and November 1997 at, respectively, Guatemala City, Havana and
Cartagena, Colombia.  The Ministerial Council has established special
committees to deal with matters that include:  trade and external
economic relations; the protection and conservation of the environment
and of the Caribbean Sea; natural resources; science, technology, health,
education and culture; and tourism and transport.  There has also been
established a working group on natural resources under the auspices of
the Committee for the Protection and Conservation of the Environment and
of the Caribbean Sea.

     In its endeavour to implement the Plan of Action of Tourism, Trade
and Transport, the Special Committee on Tourism has formulated Principles
and Strategies for the establishment of a Sustainable Tourism Zone in the
Caribbean, the first zone of this type in the world; the Special
Committee on Trade and External Economic Relations has begun to work on
the development of an ACS information system and a payment system to
promote opportunities for trade and investment among ACS member States;
the technical group on transportation has outlined the basic principles,
objectives and activities for the development of an action plan for 1998,
aiming at the realization of the ideal of uniting the Caribbean region by
air and sea.  It has also been decided to create a mechanism for disaster
prevention, mitigation and preparedness with a view to its becoming
operational in 1998, on the basis of proposals formulated by the ACS
secretariat, the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CERA), the
Coordination Centre for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central
America (CEPREDENAC), and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO);
the Special Committee on Science, Technology, Education, Health and
Culture is developing a network for cooperation in areas of common
interest in science and technology; and the ACS information and
communication network continues to develop through the establishment of
ever more fluid communication links among member States.

     In order to advance the work of ACS, the ACS secretariat,
headquartered in Port of Spain, has been charged with coordinating the
various activities and cooperating with the founding observers of ACS as
well as with other regional, hemispheric and international agencies.

     As a regional organization composed of and representing 25 member
States which are also Members of the United Nations, ACS is convinced
that possession of observer status in the United Nations General Assembly
would be extremely beneficial to it.

     Accordingly, on 24 February 1998, the bureau of the Ministerial
Council of ACS asked that the necessary steps be taken in order that ACS
be granted observer status in the General Assembly of the United Nations.


                                     ANNEX II

                                                     [Original:  English]

                                 Draft resolution


              Observer status for the Association of Caribbean States
                              in the General Assembly

     The General Assembly,

     Bearing in mind that the purposes of the Association of Caribbean
States, as enunciated in the convention by which it was established, and
which has been registered with the Secretariat of the United Nations, are
consistent with those of the United Nations,

     Considering that, accordingly, it is mutually advantageous to
provide for cooperation between the United Nations and the Association of
Caribbean States,

     Taking note of the desire of the Association of Caribbean States for
the establishment of such cooperation,

     1.   Decides to invite the Association of Caribbean States to
participate in the sessions and the work of the General Assembly in the
capacity of observer;

     2.   Requests the Secretary-General to take the necessary steps to
implement the present resolution.


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