Guyana President Dr Irfaan Ali says he is hopeful Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro will continue to comply with the process in their dispute over the Essequibo region in the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and also comply with the recently signed Declaration of Argyle brokered by Caricom.
Yesterday marked the deadline for Venezuela to present its counter-memorial to the ICJ in the ongoing border dispute, which flared up again last week.
In an interview on CNC3’s The Morning Brew yesterday, Dr Ali encouraged Venezuela to submit arguments to the world court.
“We encourage Venezuela to participate fully in that ICJ process and to then respect the outcome of the ICJ process. Today (yesterday), Venezuela should be submitting their counter-memorial, so we hope that they do so and continue to participate in the process and then respect the outcome of the process, as Guyana will.”
Last year, tensions between both nations escalated after Venezuela insisted that it had rightful claim to the mineral-rich region encompassing the majority of Guyana’s territory. The claim was further bolstered by a national referendum in Venezuela which supported the move.
In a subsequent ruling however, the ICJ asserted, “Pending a final decision in the case, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action, which would modify the situation that currently prevails in the territory in dispute, whereby the Cooperative Republic of Guyana administers and exercises control over that area.”
Just last week, Dr Ali warned Maduro that Guyana will not tolerate any move to annex sections of its territory. This followed steps taken by Maduro to activate legislation titled “Law for the Defence of Essequibo,” to make the region a new state in keeping with last December’s referendum.
Ali maintained that Guyana, which is now the world’s fastest-growing economy, given its oil boom, is fixed on peace and stability.
“Guyana’s only ambition and intention is to promote peace. Our concern is to ensure also that whatever we build integrates the countries so that we can have integrated systems and economies. We want a region that is stable and secure; a region in which the people of our countries can enjoy peace and stability.”
Ali maintained that Guyana will act to reduce its carbon footprint as it marches forward into the realm of oil and gas exploration.
Venezuela’s latest move also goes against the agreement brokered and signed in St Vincent last December. In that deal, Maduro and Ali agreed that they would not antagonise each other in the ongoing dispute and allow the Caribbean to remain a “zone of peace”
Contacted by Guardian Media on the issue yesterday, Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne maintained that Guyana’s territorial integrity and sovereignty must be respected and noted that a statement issued several days ago, reiterating Caricom’s position, remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, Dr Ali, who also serves as the chairman of Caricom, stated that despite efforts to address the Haitian instability, challenges persist.
“The leaders of this region have spent countless days, not hours, days, on Haiti in the last eight weeks. We want Haiti to be successful. We know the challenge ahead of us would be resourcing the intervention, getting the resources that are necessary to finance the intervention and we don’t want this to be a hurdle too. So while yes, we all have a responsibility to our citizens, we also have a responsibility to addressing the wider issues that are connected with Haiti.”
As he moved further south from Haiti, Dr Ali recognised that both Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago stood to benefit from shared investments and integration. He further advocated for collaborations between the nations aimed at expanding potential beyond the region. —With reporting by Jesse Ramdeo