Antigua’s contentious online gambling trade dispute with the United States has taken a more cordial turn following meetings in Washington between the two nations’ trade representatives.

Late last month, Antigua’s Minister of International Trade and Foreign Affairs Charles ‘Max’ Fernandez traveled to Washington to meet with the US Trade Representative (USTR) in a bid to resolve the 12-year-old standoff over the US refusal to grant Antigua’s licensed online gambling operators access to the US market.

Following Fernandez’s meeting with Assistant USTR for the Western Hemisphere John Melle, the two parties issued a joint statement calling their discussion “productive and useful for the exploration of various elements that could ultimately bring closure to the matter.” Both governments have now vowed to continue their talks “at an early date with a view to reaching a final settlement … as expeditiously as possible.”

While slight on details, considering the acrimony that has surrounded this dispute, this is roughly on par with Sheldon Adelson publicly hugging Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khameini. Okay, not quite, but you get the picture.