1. The Summitry of Small States: Towards the "Caribbean Summit"
- Author:
- Andrew F. Cooper and Timothy M. Shaw
- Publication Date:
- 04-2009
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for International Governance Innovation
- Abstract:
- Each Summit of the Americas forum has been accorded a single imprint. The 1994 Miami summit is remembered as the “Trade Summit,” the 1998 Santiago summit as the “Education Summit,” the 2001 Quebec City Summit as the “Democratic Summit,” and the 2005 Mar del Plata in Argentina—although officially focused on the themes of “Creating Jobs to Fight Poverty and Strengthen Democratic Governance”—is best remembered as the “Summit of Disorder.” The Fifth Summit of the Americas, April 17 – 19, 2009, presents an opportunity to identify the event with a regional sub-set of the Americas: the Caribbean. The host country, Trinidad and Tobago, is the first Caribbean country to host the event and, with a population of only 1.3 million, is the smallest state ever to host “such a logistically complicated and politically sensitive gathering” (Erikson, 2009: 179). Relegated to a marginal position in the first four summits, the Caribbean now moves to centre stage in 2009.
- Topic:
- International Relations and Diplomacy
- Political Geography:
- Argentina, Latin America, Caribbean, Miami, Santiago, Quebec City, Mar del Plata, and Trinidad and Tobago