China and Antigua and Barbuda has signed mutual visa exemption agreement on Jan 24, 2024, during the talks between Chinese Premier Li Qiang with Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne in Beijing .
Both countries first established diplomatic relations 41 years ago. Antigua and Barbuda is China’s important cooperative partner in the Caribbean, Xi said that since the establishment of diplomatic ties 40 years ago, bilateral relations have been developing smoothly with ever stronger political mutual trust, fruitful practical cooperation and ever deeper friendship between the two peoples.
Both leaders Li and Browne, besides mutual visa waiver agreement signed a number of bilateral cooperation documents on the joint construction of the Belt and Road, trade, transportation, economic development, and climate change. Both countries are advancing cooperation to strengthen people-to-people and cultural exchanges and cooperation in the fields of tourism, civil aviation, medical and health care and human resources.
Agreements were also signed covering digitalisation, bio-medics, climate change and an agreement with the Zhejiang International Studies University and UWI Five Islands Campus.
New Embassy
Antigua has opened a new embassy in Beijing. “We signed and we also launched our new embassy in Beijing, so we now have a physical presence in Beijing and that too signals that we have now lifted our bilateral relationship to a new level”, said PM Browne in a press statement.
Among the CIP’s, Dominica and Grenada have already secured their visa waiver agreements with China. Antigua will be the third country to join. The signing of agreement is expected to give a facelift to the island’s citizenship by investment program. The Citizenship by Investment programme contributes nearly 60% of non-tax revenue to the nation.
