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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, May 22, 2019 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – The Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris, on Tuesday, May 21 bade farewell to His Excellency Douglas Wanderley de Vasconcellos, whose stint as resident Ambassador of the Federative Republic of Brazil to St. Kitts and Nevis has come to an end.

Ambassador Vasconcellos presented his credentials to His Excellency the Governor General on October 22, 2012.

In a cordial meeting with Prime Minister Harris, Ambassador Vasconcellos described his tenure here in St. Kitts and Nevis as “extremely rewarding” as he sought to advance the diplomatic relationship between both countries.

Dr. Harris wholeheartedly thanked His Excellency Vasconcellos for his faithful service over the years in bringing the relationship between St. Kitts and Nevis and Brazil to the position where it is now as “one of friendship, strong cordiality and a wealth to continue to preserve and to improve upon those relationships.”   

The honourable prime minister also encouraged the diplomat to continue being a friend of St. Kitts and Nevis by promoting the interest of the country upon his return home to Brazil.

One area in which the prime minister believes Ambassador Vasconcellos can continue to lend his expertise and assistance is the Guyana-Brazil, St. Kitts and Nevis Partial Scope Agreement (PSA) which would give manufacturing companies in St. Kitts and Nevis a near zero percent tariff entry into the Portuguese-speaking South American country’s market.

“It is still an important matter for the thousands of people who work in the manufacturing sector and who over the years have helped St. Kitts and Nevis be a significant exporter within the smaller islands of merchandize products,” Prime Minister Harris said.

His Excellency Wanderley de Vasconcellos’ tenure as Ambassador of the Federative Republic of Brazil to St. Kitts and Nevis comes to an end with the temporary closure of the Brazilian Embassy in Basseterre.

Brazilian embassies in neighbouring islands of Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica have already closed.

Ambassador Vasconcellos stated that the temporary closure of the embassy in St. Kitts is as a result of the recent shift in Brazil’s foreign policy under its new leadership as well as budgetary constraints. Brazil currently has more than 130 Diplomatic Missions around the world.