Manning leaves Sunday on hectic overseas assignment

Prime Minister Patrick Manning leaves this Sunday on a very exacting and hectic overseas assignment.

Manning will head straight for Nigeria to participate in a business address which takes place between next week Tuesday and Thursday. By Friday, the Commonwealth Heads of Government begins and Manning will lead the Trinidad and Tobago delegation which includes Foreign Affairs Minister Knowlson Gift. The Commonwealth talks will end Monday December 8. But the Prime Minister’s work would have just started. He heads to England to meet the board of British Gas on Tuesday December 9. Then he goes to Spain to accept an invitation by the chairman of Repsol to visit its headquarters.

Manning will return to Trinidad and Tobago on December 12, only briefly, for within three days — December 15 — he will go to Washington to meet with a number of high profile people including the Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, Assistant Secretary of State for Latin American and Caribbean Affairs and congressional leaders. He will also address nationals in Washington.  On December 17 the Prime Minister will give the keynote address at an LNG conference in Washington. Two days later, he will visit Florida to meet Governor Jeb Bush, before returning to Trinidad and Tobago on December 20.

The Washington meetings are meant to be a precursor to a meeting early next year with US president George W Bush. This is the first time Manning will be leaving the (Caricom) region since assuming office two years ago.