US resolve Internet gambling dispute with Antigua
Regional trade ministers on Thursday called on the United States to resolve a dispute with the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda and to comply with a trade body’s ruling to lift its Internet gambling restrictions. In a statement issued at the close of a caucus in St. Lucia, ministers of the nine-member organisation of Eastern Caribbean States expressed solidarity with member Antigua in its quest for “satisfactory treatment” from the U.S. in the gambling dispute. Washington stopped U.S. banks and credit card companies from processing payments to online gambling businesses outside the country last year. The U.S., which has said it is trying to resolve the dispute with Antigua, removed online betting from a services agreement after losing a World Trade organisation ruling last year. In a filing last month, Antigua said it is asking the WTO for authorization to target American trademarks and copyrights if the U.S. refuses to change its legislation. 
Antigua argues that before the gambling ban was introduced, online wagering provided income for hundreds of its citizens and helped end its reliance on tourism. The OECS is composed of Antigua, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Grenada and the British territories of Anguilla, Montserrat and the British Virgin Islands.