According to the Daily Herald, Bonaire, Saba and St. Eustatius will attain the new status of “specific nature” within the Kingdom and have direct ties with the Netherlands, while the “aimed end perspective” for Curaçao and St. Maarten is country status within the Kingdom. All the parties concerned have agreed a target date for the new relations of July 1, 2007.

The relatively swift agreement, achieved in a five hour session, was welcomed by the Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, who told the media at the end of the conference that: "Here sits before you a very satisfied chairman."

At the last RTC in 1983, which lasted for a week, it was decided that Aruba would attain separate status on January 1, 1986, with the commitment to independence in 1996.

The current talks have their origins in a constitutional crisis which erupted in 2004 due to irreconcilable differences between the constituent islands, and a joint Commission appointed by the Netherlands and the local government concluded that the jurisdiction should be broken up, with the islands of Curacao and St Maarten becoming autonomous countries alongside the Netherlands and the Caribbean island of Aruba, whilst the remaining three islands - Saba, Bonaire and St. Eustatius - should be brought under the direct control of the Dutch government in The Hague. This was approved by the Dutch cabinet in December 2004.

It was also agreed at the latest RTC that the jurisdiction's debt, which stands at NAF5 billion (US$2.8 billion) will be restructured with the assistance of the Dutch government.

The agreement was hailed by Mr Balkenende and the leaders of the various islands as "historic" and they noted that the talks were conducted in a spirit of "involvement" and "equality".

“It’s about a good start for the islands, creating a solid foundation. We will still have the necessary discussions, but everybody wants to cooperate to realise country status for Curaçao and St. Maarten and direct ties for the others,” Mr Balkenende stated.