GEORGETOWN, Guyana – The Guyana government says it is still awaiting word from the United Nations Secretary General António Guterres regarding the border dispute between the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country and Venezuela.
“We are still waiting on the Secretary-General to carry out his responsibilities,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge, adding that the Guterres is aware of the urgency for a resolution.
In November last year, the two countries concluded another round of discussions in the presence of the presence of Guterres’s personal representative, Norwegian diplomat Dag Nylander, who was expected to submit a report to the Secretary general at the end of last year.
Guyana is seeking a final resolution to the decades-old controversy in which Venezuela contends the 1899 Arbitral Award, which delineated the border between the two countries is null and void.
“We are pretty sure that the Secretary-General is aware of the urgency of this matter and of the fact that when the Guyana government called on him to intervene it wasn’t only because Venezuelan troops were on our borders but because of the continuation of this controversy… was having a deleterious effect on Guyana and its growth,” Greenidge said.
Guterres has committed to having the matter heard in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) if there is no satisfactory resolution to the dialogue.
According to a government statement, Georgetown is prepared to litigate the matter at the ICJ. – CMC