WHILE calling for Venezuela to respect the ruling handed down by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), on December 1, the Commonwealth Ministerial Group on Guyana (CMGG) met on Monday to discuss recent developments in the Guyana-Venezuela controversy.

CMGG convened an emergency meeting, which was chaired by State Minister for Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Md. Shahriar Alam, MP, on Monday and it was called by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland KC, at the request of Guyana’s government.

According to a statement from the Commonwealth: “The Group reiterated its firm and steadfast support for the ICJ process underway as the appropriate and lawful means to address the matter under international law, the maintenance and preservation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana, its right to self-defence and the unobstructed exercise of its rights to develop the entirety of its territory for the benefit of its people.”

Notably, the meeting stood in accordance with the mandate given by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1999 to monitor, “further developments in respect of the existing controversy between Guyana and Venezuela.”

According to the statement, the Ministerial Group received an update from Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Hilton Todd, presented by High Commissioner of Guyana, Rajendra Singh, on the heightened tensions between Venezuela and Guyana, concerning the border controversy.

“The Group called for a de-escalation of the tensions between Venezuela and Guyana, respect for international law, the maintenance of peace, and the rejection of the use or threats of the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Guyana,” the statement read, while adding that the Group rejected the actions by Guyana’s western-neighbour, which pose a threat to Guyana’s sovereignty.

Reaffirming its position since the formation of the organisation in 1999 and as expressed in 2016, “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, which definitively settled the land boundary between the Co- operative Republic of Guyana and Venezuela.”

Furthermore, it said that the Group commended the Good Offices of the Secretary-General on behalf of the Commonwealth to engage its partners to support peace and stability in the Caribbean region and encouraged the Secretary-General to continue to use her Good Offices to support Guyana in upholding its territorial sovereignty and integrity.