Guyana today submitted its memorial on the merits of its case against Venezuela which is before the International Court.

The submission of the documents was required by International Court of Justice (ICJ) following its December 18 2020 decision which established its jurisdiction to hear the matter.

In 2018, the UN Secretary General referred the matter to the International Court after the UN Good Offices process did not yield any result.

Guyana wants the Court to reaffirm the decision of the Arbitral Award of 1899 which determined and settled the boundary between Guyana and Venezuela.

The Government of Venezuela is against the Court making any determination, since it believes the Court has no jurisdiction to address the matter. But the Court disagreed and established that it has the jurisdiction.

Guyana now looks to the Court’s judicial process and its settlement of the matter under the rule of law.

This year marks the 56th anniversary of the 1966 Geneva Agreement.

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Guyana considers that the true commemoration of that Agreement is in contributing in good faith to the fulfilment of its true meaning and intent by participating fully in the current juridical process deriving from it. Hence the submission today to the International Court of Justice of Guyana’s Memorial on the Merits as required by the Court”.

The former and present Guyana governments have been united in their position of the case before the ICJ as they see it as a non-partisan matter and one that is grounded in maintaining the country’s territorial integrity.

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