Bermuda is seeing diplomatic channels with the US widen thanks to executives in the Island?s international business sector paving the way for meetings between Government and those with influence on the American side.

The help may be perfectly timed with the Island?s normal diplomatic channels being hit by the premature departure earlier this year of US Consul General Denis Coleman. Although the US late last month appointed Antoinette Boecker as the acting consul, it is unlikely that there will be a sitting Consul General named until next year, given that this is an election year in America.

But here to help are those working in the Island?s international business sector who have contacts both on Capitol Hill as well as in what is arguably America?s second capital, and seat of political influence, Wall Street.

Two who have been actively putting Government in touch with influential contacts they have are David Bell and Robin Hamill who spoke with about their efforts. Although one is an American and one is a Bermudian, the two said they share the common goal of doing what they can to foster a ?positive dialogue? between the two countries.

Both Mr. Bell and Mr. Hamill work in the Island?s business sector ? Mr. Bell is vice-president and global professional lines manager with Allied World Assurance Company Ltd. (AWAC) while Mr. Hamill is president, Merrill Lynch Reinsurance Solutions Limited ? but said they were speaking and acting in a personal capacity.

Mr. Hamill told that Bermuda had much to be proud of, in building the strong international business sector that it had, but that it should never be forgotten that the US was where much of that business comes from.

He said: ?If you step back and look at the United States and what it means to us, America represents our single largest client whether you look at our tourism base or our international company base. That has been developed over many years, and we owe it to ourselves to continue to build upon that incredible trading relationship we have with the US. We should not allow the absence of a Consul General to slow things down. Relationships like any relationships need to be nurtured and tended to and improved upon and re-tooled.?

An example of what the two have been able to achieve, thus far, in their efforts, is the visit to Bermuda this week by leading American economist Dr. Irwin Stelzer, who is with the Hudson Institute and also writes a weekly column for The Sunday Times in London.

Dr. Stelzer was meeting over dinner last evening with Premier Alex Scott and acting Finance Minister and Legislative Affairs Minister Michael Scott, after Mr. Bell and Mr. Hamill were able to arrange the visit and meeting.

The Hudson Institute forecasts long-term trends and designs near-term solutions for government, business, and the non-profit world. We share optimism about the future and a willingness to question conventional wisdom. It is a proponent of free market policies, individual responsibility, the power of technology, and the preservation of America?s national security, according to information on its website.

Dr. Stelzer?s meeting with Bermuda?s leaders follows Mr. Scott and Finance Minister Paula Cox being able to meet in May with another influential American, Fred Barnes, who was here to give the keynote address at the professional liability underwriters forum, PLUS, which Mr. Bell led.

Mr. Bell said Mr. Barnes and Dr. Stelzer?s visits were examples of meetings that could be brokered between those with influence in Washington and the Government.

Mr. Barnes, a commentator with Fox News and editor of the Weekly Standard ( a widely-read political magazine) is said to be a strong influence on the Bush Administration. He was said, in the New York Times, ?as being the single greatest non-Governmental influence on the Bush administration. He carries stature both in media and policy realms,? Mr. Bell said.

Mr. Bell added that Mr. Barnes? meeting with Government had gone down well. ?There was good conversation on both sides, and Fred left the Island with a positive perception of Bermuda and of the way the Premier and Minister Cox represented themselves. That is a perfect example of how we can help people have the right perception of what Bermuda is,? he said.

As for Dr. Stelzer, Mr. Bell said: ?He is widely regarded as one of the top three economists in the United States and an expert, importantly, not only on the US economy but also on the UK economy; he is in touch with both of the economies that influence Bermuda, and Government was very quick to accept a dinner invitation with Dr. Stelzer, and there are also others from the Bermuda international business community invited.

?These are small, informal dinners. And there is no ultimate agenda for this. I am not looking to have Bermuda employ anybody for anything, lobbying or otherwise. These are simply informal discussions that may span from media to economists to lawmakers; just to help create positive dialogue between two countries ? no more, no less,? Mr. Bell said.

The timing of these meetings may also help to dispel the heated political rhetoric that Bermuda has been dragged in to with legislators, mostly on the Democrat side and including presidential hopeful Sen. John Kerry, calling for a clamp down on so-called ?corporate invertors?.

Bermuda has come under fire from leading Democratic Party members over so-called ?offshoring?, in which US companies move their places of incorporation to Bermuda while retaining their operating headquarters in the US. Sen. Kerry has also routinely cited Bermuda, on his way along the campaign trail, as being a magnet for corporations that invert their place of incorporation for tax reasons.

Although Government retains its own lobbyist in Washington D.C., and just last month made its own diplomatic trip to the US capital, help on this front from those on the Island has also been welcomed.

Mr. Bell indicated that invitations he had extended to both Premier Alex Scott and Finance Minister Paula Cox, to meet with influential guests visiting the Island, had been positively received. Mr. Scott also said in an interview earlier this year that Government?s diplomatic plan did count on help from the Island?s international business sector.

?In recent times, since I have been Premier (since July, 2003), we have met with Bermuda?s international companies to discuss whether it is prudent for us to go to the mountain or bring the mountain here.?

Mr. Scott said there were benefits to angling for some diplomatic meetings to take place on these shores, although there was a Government contingent that went to Washington in May to meet with some key legislators.

?In Washington we would be one of many, so the best decision may be to invite the decision makers over here. That is not something that Government would do directly but they could be invited by our strategic partners ? Bermuda?s international companies ? giving us the opportunity to have the Finance Minister and myself meet with them here,? he said.

He said meeting with people on the Island also gave these key visitors a chance to see first hand the Island?s corporate business set-up, and indeed why companies might choose Bermuda.

?Rather than always taking our staff to Washington, we may end up bringing some decision makers here or doing a mix of both,? he said.