The European Union would like to express its congratulations on the occasion of the official inauguration ceremony of the CARICOM Single Market, taking place on 30 January 2006 in Kingston, Jamaica. The European Union warmly salutes and welcomes the entry into force of the first component of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME).
The EU will strongly support the completion and operation of the CSME as an essential element of regional integration and a significant step towards the establishment of an Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU. The EU welcomes the launching of the Single Market component of the CSME. In the context of the EU-LAC process and regional cooperation it will undoubtedly contribute to the strengthening and streamlining of existing regional institutions and policies thereby ensuring their smooth operation.
The EU equally welcomes the establishment of the new Regional Development Fund which aims at assisting disadvantaged CARICOM countries in respect of the operation and functioning of the Single Market.
The EU firmly believes that regional integration is a key element for economic growth and investment and thus for the development of the region. Additionally, the creation of the CSME will facilitate and foster the smooth and gradual integration of the region into the world economy.
By combining trade relations with substantial economic and development co-operation, the EU for its part will continue to assist and support its Caribbean partners to seize the opportunities offered by the new global challenges. The EU is looking forward to the CSME´s further expansion and development.
The Acceding Countries Bulgaria and Romania, the Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia* and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro, and the EFTA countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova align themselves with this declaration.
* Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.
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