The "Territorial Diplomacy" of the French Overseas Departments vis-a-vis the English- speaking Caribbean

Abstract

This article examines the practice of 'territorial diplomacy' by the French Caribbean against the backdrop of the EU debt crisis. Increasing economic hardship is in large part helping reshape the Overseas Departments' (DOMs) relationship with the Anglophone Caribbean, from which they have been traditionally alienated and with whom engagement in the areas of trade, security and cultural exchange has been rather limited. In this regard, a number of recent developments that point to a rapprochement between the DOM and their English-speaking neighbours are outlined.