The head of state of both

Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

, who holds the title King of Belize. Both nations are members of the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...

and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

History

High commissions of Antigua and Barbuda and Belize in London

Belize was granted independence from the United Kingdom in 1981. Formerly known as

British Honduras British Honduras was a Crown colony on the east coast of Central America — specifically located on the southern edge of the Yucatan Peninsula from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony — renamed Belize from June 1973

, the British maintained a garrison in Belize well into the 1990s, until

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

, which has always claimed sovereignty of the country, signed a treaty recognizing Belize's independence.

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

visited Belize on two occasions. The first time was in October 1985 and the second time in February 1994. On 3 March 2012,

Prince Harry Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984) is a member of the British royal family. As the younger son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales, he is fifth in the line of succession to ...

visited Belize on a tour of Commonwealth countries in the region as the Queen's representative in her Diamond Jubilee, making this his first solo royal tour. There he renamed Zennia Boulevard (also known as Cohune Walk Boulevard) in the capital to "Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Boulevard", in honour of his grandmother.

Economic relations

From December 2008 until 30 December 2020, trade between Belize and the UK was governed by the

CARIFORUM The Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM) is a subgroup of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States and serves as a base for economic dialogue with the European Union. It was established in 1992. Its membership comprises the 15 Caribbean C ...

–

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

Economic Partnership Agreement An economic partnership agreement is an economic arrangement that eliminates barriers to the free movement of goods, services, and investment between countries. This agreement can be considered an intermediate step between free trade area and ...

. Following the

withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET). The UK, which joined t ...

, the UK and the CARIFORUM states signed a continuity trade agreement based on the EU agreement; this agreement has governed Belize–UK trade since 1 January 2021.

Resident diplomatic missions

* Belize has a high commission in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. * United Kingdom has a high commission in

Belmopan Belmopan () is the capital city of Belize. Its population in 2010 was 16,451. Belmopan is the smallest capital city in the continental Americas (by population) and the third-largest settlement in Belize, behind Belize City and San Ignacio. Fou ...

.High Commission of the United Kingdom in Belmopan
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References

United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations Relations of colonizer and former colony {{Bilateralrelations-stub

History

Economic relations

Resident diplomatic missions

See also

References