–country maintains commitment to peaceful resolution of border controversy
–Venezuela’s aggressive narrative being taken very seriously, President Ali says
COMMANDER-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Dr. Irfaan Ali, has said that the government continues to take note of Venezuela’s aggressive threats, and will spare no efforts to safeguard Guyana’s territorial integrity.
During an interview with CBS News on Tuesday, President Ali highlighted that Guyana is preparing for any eventualities should Venezuela act in a “reckless” or “adventurous” manner.
While underscoring the international and regional support Guyana has been receiving, Dr Ali remarked: “We are also preparing for the worst-case scenario. We are preparing with our allies, with our friends to ensure that we are in a position to defend what is ours, the Essequibo.”
The President, however, affirmed Guyana’s commitment to a peaceful resolution of the controversy, noting: “We want this to be resolved in a peaceful manner.”
He went on to say: “We are doing everything to ensure that the zone remains a zone of peace and to encourage Venezuela to do what is right and to abide by international norms and international law.”
With Venezuela’s recent referendum being labelled as a scapegoat for the Maduro administration, President Ali said: “…We’re taking this very seriously because of the narrative that is coming out of Venezuela, the threat [coming] out of Venezuela.
“…recently, Venezuela opened defiance of the International Court of Justice when the leaders there basically said they would not adhere to the orders of the ICJ. Now, this is an important issue for us in the region because we want this region to remain a zone of peace.”
Dr Ali said that Guyana’s first line of defence is diplomacy and underscored that he has engaged countries like the United States of America, India, among others.
He also said that he has appealed to Cuba, a close friend to Venezuela, so that they can try to convince Guyana’s Spanish-speaking neighbour to adhere to international law.
The Head-of-State then said that while the Bolivarian Republic is saying they do not recognise the ICJ’s jurisdiction in the matter, Venezuela has already subjected itself to the International Court.
“Venezuela went twice to the ICJ on the issue of jurisdiction and the ICJ ruled against Venezuela, saying that the ICJ has jurisdiction to look at this matter,” Dr Ali said, while stressing that the Spanish-speaking country’s rhetoric shows their evident double-standard.
Despite regional and international pleas for the Venezuelan administration to abide by international law, the nation defied these calls and went full speed ahead with its full referendum.
The ICJ, last Friday, granted Guyana provisional measures to prevent any action by Venezuela that could lead to the annexation of Guyana’s territory.
The decision was handed down by the President of the ICJ, Justice Joan E. Donoghue, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands.
The court ordered that pending the decision of the substantive case, Venezuela shall refrain from taking any action that would modify the situation that currently prevails with the territory, which Guyana administers and exercises control. As an additional measure, the court also ordered that “both parties refrain from any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute before the court or make it more difficult to resolve.”
