The President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, sends a letter to the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, containing a proposal for dialogue and activation of the Geneva Agreement, in the context of the existing territorial controversy between the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela:
«We believe that now more than ever it is necessary to count on your good will, on your good offices in the broadest sense possible to restart with the urgency that this controversy warrants direct talks between Guyana and Venezuela, with the goal of advancing towards a peaceful understanding and beneficial to both parties”, says the Venezuelan Head of State to Guterres in this letter.
During a meeting with the National Defense Council and the State Council held at Miraflores Palace, the President explained that this action, for the sake of dialogue, “is part of the diplomatic actions to respond to this unjust, infamous and unlawful decision of the International Court of Justice on December 18, and to say that Venezuela wants to resolve this in peace”.
On December 18, 2020, Venezuela rejected the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) contrary to the spirit of the Geneva Agreement on Guayana Essequibo, and through a statement it ruled in relation to the unilateral claim filed by the Cooperative Republic of Guyana against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on the validity of the Arbitration Award of 1899.
At that time, Venezuela informed the national and international community that the Geneva Agreement is the only restrictive bilateral norm in force, applicable to settle the territorial dispute through friendly negotiations, therefore, the foregoing denies judicial means, incapable of reaching the practical and satisfactory arrangement that this Treaty imposes on both parties.
This Wednesday, the national dignitary ratified this position and maintained that “Venezuela, its history and its future are deeply rooted in dialogue and peaceful ways as effective and unavoidable ways to overcome controversies, our commitment is firm in that direction and with the consolidation of multilateralism, while awaiting your greater attention to this letter, I make the occasion propitious to express, Mr. Secretary General, the assurances of my highest esteem and consideration.”
He ratified: “We want to solve this through words, dialogue, agreement, international law. Venezuela has its historical rights guaranteed.”
Among the aspects highlighted in the letter sent by the Venezuelan President to Guterres are “the various events that seek to influence the existing territorial dispute between the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and its due resolution through peaceful negotiations as contemplated in the 1966 Geneva Agreement ”.
In this letter, Venezuela also maintains: «It has never given its consent for the Court to hear about the territorial controversy over Guayana Essequibo, much less to involve it in a unilateral action brought by Guyana, on a legal matter already overcome such as the Arbitration Award of 1899 ”, according to the document read by the national dignitary.
