Commonwealth ministers briefed on border controversy
Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge, speaking with Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Janice Charette, just before the commencement of the Commonwealth Ministerial Advisory Group Meeting.
Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge, speaking with Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Janice Charette, just before the commencement of the Commonwealth Ministerial Advisory Group Meeting.

The Commonwealth Ministerial Group on Guyana was on Thursday briefed on the ongoing border controversy between Guyana and Venezuela.
In a statement, the ministerial group said it discussed the recent developments related to the controversy which arose from Venezuela’s contention that the 1899 Arbitral Award, which definitively settled the land boundary between the two countries, is null and void.
During the meeting convened by Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Patricia Scotland, at the request of Guyana, and chaired by Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Abdul Hassan Mahmood Ali, Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge provided an update on the developments.

The group noted Guyana’s concerns on the issue, particularly, the impact the controversy has had on the country’s economic development.
Additionally, the group acknowledged the efforts by the United Nations Secretary-General to facilitate a resolution between the two countries, and commended Guyana’s commitment to engage in the UN Secretary-General’s Good Offices process.
It was recalled that at the last Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting held in Malta in November 2015, the leaders noted that “the Geneva Agreement of 1966 between the parties provides a range of mechanisms for an expeditious solution to the controversy arising from Venezuela’s contention of invalidity of the 1899 Arbitral Award.”
During that meeting, the heads gave their full support for the UN Secretary-General to choose a means of settlement in keeping with the provisions of the 1966 Geneva Agreement 1966, to bring the controversy to a definitive end.
Additionally, the position taken by the CARICOM leaders on July 7, 2017 on the matter was also reaffirmed. During that meeting, the leaders welcomed the appointment of the personal representative of the UN Secretary-General in the Good Offices Process, Dag Nylander.

The Good Offices process is expected to come to an end this year, after which the UN Secretary-General will determine if significant progress has been made towards arriving at a solution to the border controversy.
If there is no agreement, then the only option left is for the Secretary- General to forward the matter to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), unless Guyana and Venezuela decides otherwise.
“CARICOM Leaders’ reiterated the firm and unequivocal support of the Caribbean Community for the maintenance and preservation of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The group reiterated the unequivocal and collective support of Commonwealth member governments for the maintenance and preservation of Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial borders, in accordance with the 1899 Arbitral Award,” the statement said.
The group also agreed to draw the conclusions of their meeting to the attention of all Commonwealth member governments. The Commonwealth Ministerial Group comprises of representatives of Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Canada, Guyana, Jamaica, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, Minister Greenidge told reporters that the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2018, will touch on border controversies, among other issues.
“The future of the Commonwealth is being examined, the question of youth, technology and a variety of other issues will be examined, and of course, given that Britain has now decided to leave the EU, one would expect that Britain itself would be trying to hold to influence, the direction,and the role of the Commonwealth in the future, so it could perhaps play a more dynamic role than it has done in recent years in the context of the Commonwealth,” Minister Greenidge further explained.
In addition to the CFAMM, Minister Greenidge also attended a Commonwealth Ministerial Advisory Group Meeting which was also held at the UN headquarters earlier in the day.
The Guyanese foreign affairs minister had also attended a lunch meeting between CARICOM Foreign Ministers and the Nordic Foreign Ministers.
He said it was during that meeting that the Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden – pledged to financially assist CARICOM countries that have been ravaged by hurricane in recent days.

“They have indicated that they are rendering assistance through the UN. I think they are offering about US$1M through that body and also immediately mentioned $100,000 Swiss francs to Antigua and Barbuda,” Minister Greenidge disclosed.
He noted that there was a wide-ranging and extensive discussion on the impact of hurricanes and the importance of mitigation and prevention.

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