PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says Trinidad and Tobago will not recognise Dr. Carla Barnett as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretary General after August when her first five-year term ends, even as regional countries maintained that she had been reappointed to the position for another five years.

TORTOLA,  British Virgin Islands – Premier Natalio Wheatley has defended the decision by elected leaders to exclude same-sex marriage from the territory’s next constitution, which is expected to be finalised following negotiations with the United Kingdom. 

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dr. Dana Morris Dixon, says amendment to the country’s legislation that facilitates adoption, as well as administrative changes in the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA), will assist in making the adoption process less tedious.

NASSAU, Bahamas – The leader of the main opposition Free National Movement, (FNM) Michael Pintard has conceded defeat in Tuesday’s general election as the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) is heading towards a convincing victory.

ATLANTA, Georgia — In a gesture underscoring the deepening partnership between Jamaica and the U.S. state of Georgia, Jamaica’s Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Major General (Ret’d) Antony Anderson, has been formally recognised by the Georgia State Senate for his diplomatic leadership and commitment to strengthening international cooperation.

HAGUE – Guyana Friday reiterated its position that the disputed Essequibo Region is part of its territory and dismissed the positions outlined by Venezuela before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as unbelievable.

HAGUE – Guyana remains optimistic that the International Court of Justice (ICJ)  will rule in its favour in the border dispute with Venezuela after the court Monday ended two rounds of oral pleadings.

TORONTO – The Government of Canada said on Friday that its Prime Minister, Mark Carney, met with the President of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, in Toronto, where the leaders emphasised the “strong” ties between Canada and Guyana.

HAMILTON, Bermuda - The Bermuda government says it will hold two additional public consultations regarding the island’s moves towards membership of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

NEW YORK, New York – The Kings County Criminal Bar Association (KCCBA) in Brooklyn, New York has bestowed its “Judge of the Year” award on Caribbean-American Justice Dena Douglas.

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua –  Foreign Affairs Minister, E.P Chet Greene says the 15-member regional integration grouping, CARICCOM, is  “now at a cross roads”  and regional leaders will have to do much more “to fashion responses” to the problem facing the region.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Guyana police Tuesday ordered Opposition Leader, Azruddin Mohamed and his billionaire businessman father, Nazar “Shell” Mohamed to surrender all their  personal firearms and ammunition, almost two months after they were sanctioned by the United States authorities for alleged tax evasion on gold exports.