Written by Vanessa Narine
DIRECTOR General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Elizabeth Harper, confirmed yesterday that a meeting with the Venezuelan authorities to address the October 10 seizure of the MV Teknik Perdana remains on the cards; but, up to press time, she could not confirm a date for the meeting, or the names on the bilateral teams to be engaged.Following the vessel seizing incident, the Guyana Foreign Affairs Ministry issued a statement stressing Government’s commitment to working with the Venezuelan Government to find a diplomatic solution to the problem.

“Guyana intends to employ all peaceful means to facilitate a prompt return to the status quo ante, since neither the Venezuelan naval vessel, the agents of Venezuela, its Government nor any other state has the authority to exercise any action in Guyana’s territorial waters, its continental shelf, or its exclusive economic zone without its express consent,” the statement said.
The ministry’s diplomatic approach to addressing the problem has been lauded by the Peoples’ Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C). Party Member, Parliamentarian Dr. Vindhya Persaud, pointed out at the PPP/C’s weekly press briefing yesterday that the current administration has always opted for diplomatic solutions – a fact evidenced by the numerous bilateral agreements and exchange visits between the two countries.
She said: “The PPP has always advocated for diplomatic and peaceful alternatives to address issues of mutual concern between our neighbouring states. We firmly believe that this process has been advanced over the years to a stage where our nation enjoys cooperative and meaningful relations with our neighbours…. The party supports a peaceful resolution to the current situation, and Dr Persaud said the bilateral relations between Venezuela and Guyana must continue to develop to the mutual benefit of the Guyanese and Venezuelan peoples.
“We support the position taken by the Government of Guyana to employ all peaceful means to resolve this unfortunate development in the shortest possible timeframe, and to ensure there is no recurrence in the future”, Dr Persaud said.
She added that the incident is regrettable, but the continued trend of diplomacy is laudable.
The MV Teknik Perdana, a Panamanian-flagged seismic vessel with 36 navigation and engineering specialists on board, including five U.S. citizens, was under contract with Anadarko, the third largest independent U.S. oil and natural gas producer, which has a petroleum prospecting licence to search for hydrocarbons in the Roraima block offshore Guyana.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, upon entry into Guyana’s territory, the Venezuelan naval vessel obstructed the research vessel’s passage, requested its crew to change course, and ordered that the surveying activity must cease.
Explanations that the MV Teknik Perdana was conducting a multi-beam survey of the seafloor in Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) were met with insistence that the vessel was working in Venezuela’s EEZ, and instructions were issued for the vessel’s engine to be switched off and seismic equipment shut down. The vessel was later instructed to increase its speed and sail to the island of Margarita in Venezuela.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry maintains that the MV Teknik Perdana was in Guyana’s waters when this incident took place, and that the actions by the Venezuelan naval vessel are unprecedented in the years of the two countries’ relations.
The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry has since responded with a statement demanding an official explanation from the Guyanese authorities. “Venezuela expresses its deepest concerns over the manner in which foreign vessels authorised by the Government of Guyana enter Venezuelan territorial waters and exclusive economic area,” the statement said. “We reiterate that the Bolivarian National Navy would never encroach on the territory of a fraternal nation.”
Reports are that the vessel and crew remain detained in Venezuela.