Minister of Foreign Affairs; Foreign Trade and Immigration

Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, delivered a statement at the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers Meeting at Marlborough House in London on March 15, 2023.

After close to a decade without a United States (U.S.) ambassador, Belize welcomed a new high-ranking diplomat, Michelle Kwan, who will take the post and head the American Embassy in the Capital City of Belmopan. Kwan arrived with her family in Belize on Friday, November 2nd, and will officially assume duties after presenting her Letters of Credence to Governor General Her Excellency Dame Froyla Tzalam.

Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, bid farewell to Mr. Tariq Al-Othman, Chargé d'affaires at the Embassy of Qatar in El Salvador, accredited to Belize.

On February 2, 2022, Belize and Mexico met virtually to advance discussions for a trade agreement between the two countries. Belize's delegation was led by the Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, while the Mexican delegation was led by Señora Tatiana Clouthier Carrillo, Secretary of the Economy.

A group of 35 Venezuelan nationals, a Moroccan, and one person from the Dominican Republic traveling from Panama on January 18th on a COPA Airlines flight were found inadmissible to enter Belize. Attempts to return them to their last point of embarkation- Panama saw difficulties. The process extended to Saturday, January 22nd, when 21 passengers were returned to Panama via COPA, while eight sought refugee status in Belize. Several of the remaining persons, including children, could not leave the country after testing positive for COVID-19. These persons will remain (detained) at a hotel in Belize city at the expense of COPA Airlines. They will be returned to Panama as soon as it is safe to travel.

Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, today welcomed H.E. Rodolfo Solano Quirós, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Republic of Costa Rica, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade at the Leigh Richardson Building in Belmopan.

The Forty-Eight Meeting of the Community Council (CARICOM) of Ministers met virtually on, January 14, 2022, under the chairmanship of Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration.

Hon. Eamon Courtenay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Immigration, and Hon. Jose Mai, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise, and their respective teams met on December 20, 2021, to discuss greater cooperation and collaboration between the two ministries, with a view to further develop the country’s agenda for trade and investment with Guatemala and Mexico.