And that is what he hopes will emerge from this week's historic Caribbean-United States conference that will bring together high-level representatives, including heads of government/state from all CARICOM countries and the United States president, George W. Bush.

"I think that we have the opportunity to begin to discuss with the United States government having a more mature relationship with the United States," the Prime Miniter said.

"We haven't been on their radar a lot, and the region still has permanent interests that it has to promote and express itself carefully about."

Arthur said the June 19-21 conference was going to be the first of its kind "and we are not only meeting with the United States president, but with the Congress and the leaders of the American society".

"We will get the opportunity to put a Caribbean perspective on what the relationship should be in the future," he added.

"We shouldn't expect too much from one meeting. I hope that it will be the beginning of a relationship that is not episodic." Joint effort

Organisers say the conference represents a joint effort by the Governments of the region and the United States to engage in a dialogue aimed at enhancing their relationship.

A fundamental component of the conference is the Diaspora Forum, scheduled for June 19 to 20 at the headquarters of the Organisation of the American States in Washington DC, which will enable embers of the Caribbean Diaspora and senior government representatives from CARICOM to examine and develop mechanisms for harnessing the skills of the Diaspora in accelerating the development of the region, as well as enhancing the well-being of people of Caribbean descent in the United States.

To that end, the Diaspora Forum will focus on; The Challenges And Opportunities For The Caribbean – US Diaspora; Economic And Financial Empowerment Of The Caribbean – US Diaspora; Mobilising The Caribbean – US Diaspora Skills, Knowledge And Professional Networks and Banking On The Future: Engaging The Youth. (AB)