Antigua and Barbuda and Its Neighbours in the Caribbean

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA · NEIGHBOURHOOD

Antigua and Barbuda neighbours are mostly small islands, French and British territories included, and the ties between them run through the sea. This guide explains the borders, trade, clubs and US pressure that shape a country hosting 56 Commonwealth leaders from 1 November 2026.

Antigua and Barbuda and Its Neighbours in Plain English

Antigua and Barbuda is a two-island country in the Eastern Caribbean, with 442 square kilometres of land, according to CARICOM. Its capital is St. John’s, and this guide builds on our Caribbean hub and our moving to Antigua and Barbuda guide.

Antigua and Barbuda neighbours share no land border with it, so the shared space is the sea. That makes sea lines, shipping, storms and regional clubs the core of the story.

• Antigua and Barbuda: about 94,000 people in 2025, according to World Bank data, with the capital St. John’s on the larger island.
• CARICOM: the Caribbean Community, a group of 15 member states and eight associate members that trade and cooperate.
• OECS: the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, a smaller club of island states that share a currency, a central bank and a supreme court.
• ECCB: the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, which issues the Eastern Caribbean dollar used in Antigua and Barbuda.
• CHOGM: the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, a summit of leaders of 56 countries, mostly former British territories.

Where Antigua and Barbuda Sits Among Its Neighbours

Antigua and Barbuda is one of the Leeward Islands, the northern half of the Eastern Caribbean chain. Its waters touch five neighbours, according to the Commonwealth Secretariat, the club of former British territories that advised on its sea borders.

Anguilla, a British territory, and Saint-Barthélemy, a French island, lie to the northwest. Saint Kitts and Nevis, an independent country, lies to the west.

Montserrat, a British territory, lies to the southwest, and Guadeloupe, a French region, lies to the southeast. So two of the five Antigua and Barbuda neighbours are British and two are French.

Barbuda, the country’s second island, lies north of Antigua. The two islands together make up one state, governed from St. John’s.

Sea Borders With France, Britain and Saint Kitts

Because the country is made of islands, its borders are lines drawn through the sea. They decide who may fish, who may drill and who may lease seabed.

The country’s sea zone covers about 107,914 square kilometres, roughly 240 times its land, according to the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2021. Prime Minister Gaston Browne still leads the government, and on 26 October 2026 the Commonwealth Secretariat said he will welcome summit delegates.

A treaty with France, signed on 15 March 2017, took effect on 1 October 2018, according to the United Nations ocean-law office. A second agreement, with the United Kingdom for the waters around Anguilla, was signed on 27 July 2021.

That left two lines, with Saint Kitts and Nevis and Montserrat, still to be negotiated, according to the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2021. No later treaty on either line appears in the United Nations list for Antigua and Barbuda in October 2026.

Trade and Money Across the Islands

The trade of Antigua and Barbuda neighbours and partners shows one pattern: it buys far more than it sells. Recorded imports came to about US$670 million in 2023, according to World Bank trade data compiled from customs records.

The United States supplied about US$339 million of that, or roughly 51 percent. Japan came second at about US$34 million, and Trinidad and Tobago was the biggest Caribbean seller at about US$28 million.

Recorded exports were small, at about US$30 million in 2023. The Caribbean and Latin America as a group took about US$11 million of them.

The Dutch half of Saint Martin bought US$4.1 million, and the United States took US$7.7 million. Like its OECS neighbours, the country uses the Eastern Caribbean dollar, fixed at 2.70 to the US dollar.

The Regional Clubs Antigua and Barbuda Belongs To

The OECS began on 18 June 1981, when seven governments signed the Treaty of Basseterre. Lester Bird signed for Antigua and Barbuda.

Its members include Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. They share the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank and the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, according to the OECS.

The OECS has older roots in Antigua. The secretariat of an earlier trading bloc, the East Caribbean Common Market, was based there from 1968.

Our guides to Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines show the same club from the other islands.CARICOM is the wider club, and Antigua and Barbuda joined it on 4 July 1974, according to CARICOM.The group says it is the oldest surviving integration movement in the developing world, with about 16 million citizens.Within CARICOM, the country holds the quasi-cabinet job for services, which means it leads regional talks on that part of trade.It does not use the Caribbean Court of Justice as its final court; only Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Guyana and Saint Lucia do.

People and Money Moving Between the Islands

Antigua and Barbuda neighbours trade people as well as goods, and movement between the islands is large. The World Bank estimated 30,473 international migrants living in the country in 2024, about one in three residents.

Cash sent home by relatives abroad is small by regional standards. Remittances were about US$22 million in 2025, or 0.9 percent of the economy, according to World Bank data.

The economy itself was about US$2.3 billion in 2025, according to World Bank data. A single big project can therefore move the whole picture, and hosting a Commonwealth summit of 56 leaders is one.

For a deeper look at daily life, rents and visas for newcomers, see our guide to moving to Antigua and Barbuda. Our sister-island view of Saint Kitts and Nevis shows how the neighbours compare.

Politics at Home and the Commonwealth Summit

Prime Minister Gaston Browne is the host of the summit, according to a Commonwealth Secretariat release of 26 October 2026. The Antigua and Barbuda Electoral Commission published full results of the 2026 general election on 1 May 2026.

Turnout was 62.41 percent of 63,313 registered voters, and all 190 ballot boxes were counted. The results map shows four lists: the Antigua Barbuda Labour Party, the United Progressive Party, independents and the Barbuda People’s Movement.

The Commonwealth leaders’ summit runs from 1 to 4 November 2026 in St. John’s. Its theme is accelerating partnerships and investment.

It is the 28th such summit, and Antigua and Barbuda is the smallest host ever, according to the Commonwealth Secretariat.King Charles III is due to address the opening ceremony on 3 November, accompanied by Queen Camilla.The country marks 45 years of independence from Britain, which came on 1 November 1981, on the eve of the event.

US Pressure and Why Neighbours Share It

A US presidential proclamation of 16 December 2025 took effect on 1 January 2026. It suspends entry of Antigua and Barbuda nationals as immigrants and on business, tourist, student and exchange visas.

The proclamation says the country has “historically had CBI without residency”, meaning it sold citizenship without requiring residence. Dominica, another OECS neighbour, is named with the same wording.

The two small states therefore face the same US rules, which pushes their leaders closer in talks with Washington. The proclamation lists 15 countries in all, among them Nigeria and Gabon.

The episode shows where the country follows rather than leads. It shares a currency and a club with the OECS, but on US visas it stands with one neighbour.

What It Means for US Readers

The United States is by far the biggest single trading partner, supplying about 51 percent of recorded imports in 2023. The Eastern Caribbean dollar is tied to the US dollar, so US travellers and investors face no exchange-rate swings on the islands.

For US readers, Antigua and Barbuda nationals face US entry limits, while Americans going to the islands do not. Hurricane season runs from June to November, so travellers who book then should buy storm cover.

For US officials and investors, the sea lines with Saint Kitts and Nevis and Montserrat are the open items on the map. The country’s sea zone is about 240 times its land.

What Is Not Known

As of October 2026, it is not known whether the sea lines with Saint Kitts and Nevis and Montserrat are agreed. The last official statement, from 2021, listed both as still to be negotiated.

It is also not known whether the US restrictions have changed since they took effect on 1 January 2026. No date for a review has been published.

The size of any oil or gas resource in the country’s waters has not been confirmed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which countries are Antigua and Barbuda’s neighbours?

Saint Kitts and Nevis lies to the west, with Montserrat, Anguilla, Saint-Barthélemy and Guadeloupe nearby. The country has no land border, so all its borders are in the sea.

Does Antigua and Barbuda have a border dispute?

No land dispute exists, because the country is made of islands. Sea lines with Saint Kitts and Nevis and Montserrat were still to be negotiated in the last official statement, from 2021.

Which regional groups does Antigua and Barbuda belong to?

It belongs to CARICOM, which it joined in 1974, and the OECS, whose treaty it signed in 1981. The OECS states share the Eastern Caribbean dollar and its central bank.

What currency does Antigua and Barbuda use?

It uses the Eastern Caribbean dollar, fixed at 2.70 to the US dollar. The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank issues it for the OECS states.

Who are the main trading partners?

The United States supplied about 51 percent of recorded imports in 2023, and Japan came next. Trinidad and Tobago was the largest Caribbean seller, and exports are small.

Why does the Commonwealth summit matter for Antigua and Barbuda?

It brings leaders of 56 countries to St. John’s from 1 to 4 November 2026. The country is the smallest ever host, so the summit puts its neighbourhood in view.

Sources: World Bank, World Development Indicators for Antigua and Barbuda (population, GDP, remittances, migrant stock), 2026-10-29; World Bank WITS, Antigua and Barbuda trade by partner, 2023, 2026-10-29; United Nations, Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea: Antigua and Barbuda, 2026-10-29; Commonwealth Secretariat, Antigua and Barbuda and the UK sign maritime boundary agreement, 2021-08-19; Commonwealth Secretariat, CHOGM 2026 is our moment to shape what comes next, 2026-10-26; CARICOM, Antigua and Barbuda country profile, 2026-10-29; CARICOM, Who we are, 2026-10-29; Caribbean Court of Justice, About the CCJ, 2026-10-29; Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, history of the organisation, 2026-10-29; Antigua and Barbuda Electoral Commission, 2026 general election results, 2026-05-01; White House, Presidential Proclamation 10998 restricting entry of foreign nationals (16 December 2025), 2025-12-16.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief