From left: Kingdom and Interior Affairs Senior Policy Advisor Olivia Lake; Deputy Minister Plenipotentiary Michael Somersall and Cabinet of the Minister Plenipotentiary Senior Adviser Carol Voges.
PHILIPSBURG--Deputy Minister Plenipotentiary Michael Somersall participated in the EU Association of Overseas Countries and Territories OCTA Ministerial Conference in French Polynesia recently.
Somersall signed the OCTA political declaration and administrative resolutions on behalf of St. Maarten during the conference.
He reiterated St. Maarten’s support for continued cooperation with the United Kingdom (UK) Overseas Territories within OCTA to the extent possible, with regard to the future relationship between the UK and the EU, during his intervention. He shared St. Maarten’s outstanding concerns with regard to the proposed OCT financial instrument post-2020 and urged OCTs to work together to ensure that the future financial instrument takes into account their specificities and constraints.
Following two consecutive terms as OCTA Executive Committee President on behalf of St. Maarten, Carol Voges handed over the baton to Saint Pierre et Miquelon for the administrative year 2019. St. Maarten retains a position as member of the executive committee.
