BRADES, Montserrat, CMC – Caribbean governments are being urged to carefully balance short-term fuel subsidies with long-term investments as the conflict between the United States and Iran drives up global oil prices and strains already limited public finances.

Speaking on a radio programme in Montserrat on Tuesday, Premier Reuben Meade said governments must be prudent in providing subsidies, warning that such measures ultimately come at a cost to taxpayers.

"Sometimes we provide subsidies at a tremendous cost to the government, and that cost has to be recouped in some way," said Meade, an economist. "So we have to be very prudent in how we introduce subsidies."