The government used Tuesday’s Throne Speech to warn that ongoing global conflicts are driving up fuel, shipping and consumer costs for small island states such as Antigua and Barbuda, despite those countries having no role in the disputes.

Governor-General Sir Rodney Williams pointed to wars involving Russia, Ukraine, Iran, Israel and the United States as examples of geopolitical tensions creating economic hardships far beyond the regions directly affected.

“There are two wars being waged by the strongest nations on earth, resulting in deaths in those affected countries and significant burdens being borne by small countries like ours,” Sir Rodney said during the ceremonial opening of Parliament.

The Governor-General specifically referenced the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, saying sanctions imposed on Russia contributed to rising global fossil fuel prices.

“As sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation caused its sale of energy products to decline, the price of fossil fuels globally began to rise,” the speech stated.

The Throne Speech also cited tensions involving Iran and Israel, claiming that disruptions to a major shipping route through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil flows contributed to higher shipping, insurance and consumer costs internationally.

“When the USA and Israel launched attacks against Iran, and that country closed one of the sea lanes through which 20% of the world’s oil usually flows, the price of shipping, insurance, fuels and consumer goods also began to rise globally,” Sir Rodney said.

The government argued that small developing states continue to suffer economic consequences from international conflicts they neither caused nor influenced.

“Small states, have played no role in starting these conflicts that have generated tough economic choices for the people of Antigua and Barbuda, the Caribbean, and the people of these two large states,” the Governor-General said.

The remarks came during the foreign affairs section of the Throne Speech, where the government also reaffirmed its support for multilateralism and regional cooperation through CARICOM.

Sir Rodney additionally praised Foreign Affairs Minister E.P. Chet Greene for what the government described as skillful management of Antigua and Barbuda’s international affairs amid increasingly difficult geopolitical conditions.