President Granger presses UN to curb Venezuela’s “expansionist ambitions”

According to Mr. Granger, the United Nations remains our Guyana's best hope,adding that "the United Nations is our best prospect of peace. The United Nations is our best assurance of security for a small state. The United Nations is our strength, support and succour in our time of danger. We pledge Guyana’s adherence to the Charter of the United Nations."

President Granger presses UN to curb Venezuela’s “expansionist ambitions”

by Gordon Moseley at UN Headquarters in New York

In his first speech to the United Nations General Assembly, President David Granger called on the international body to do more than just monitor conflicts that affect small states like Guyana. He said the United Nations must act in the interest of those small states.

“Guyana calls upon the United Nations to give real meaning to Resolution A/RES/49/31 of May 9th 1994 by establishing a collective security system not merely to ‘‘monitor’ but, more so, ‘maintain’ the security of small states. This Resolution is a ‘manifesto’ of small states security”, the President said.

According to Mr. Granger, the United Nations remains our Guyana’s best hope,adding that “the United Nations is our best prospect of peace. The United Nations is our best assurance of security for a small state. The United Nations is our strength, support and succour in our time of danger. We pledge Guyana’s adherence to the Charter of the United Nations.”

According to the President, “Guyana reposes its faith and places its fate in the international system of peace that was promised by the Charter of the United Nations seventy years ago. We want to bring an end to Venezuelan aggression. We want to develop our country, all of our country, in accordance with international law”.

He spoke extensively about the ongoing border controversy with Venezuela. The President said Venezuela’s expansionist ambitions must be curtailed and the neighbouring country must respect the 1899 Tribunal Award that settled the border conflict.

“Venezuela’s expansionist ambitions cannot be allowed to unsettle the principle of inviolability of borders, undermine the tenets of international law and unravel borders which have been undisturbed for decades.”

 

The President also told the UN General Assembly that Guyana has the fullest confidence in the judgment and capacity of the United Nations, through the Office of the Secretary General to identify solutions that will validate the ‘just, perfect and final’ nature of the award.

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He said “We thank the United Nations and the Secretary General for appointing various Good Officers to help to resolve this controversy over the past twenty-five years. We feel that this process has now been exhausted.”

 

President Granger said “Guyana does not wish that this obnoxious territorial claim should obscure the prospects of peace and obstruct the possibility of growth for the next fifty years.”

 

He added that Guyana needs a permanent solution in order to “avoid the fate of perpetual peril and penury”, maintaining that Guyana seeks a juridical settlement to the controversy.

 

President Granger’s statement to the United Nations came just two days after he met and held discussions with the Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in the presence of the UN Secretary General.

 

At that meeting, Mr. Maduro agreed to accept the credentials of the new Guyana Ambassador and return his Ambassador back to Guyana.

 

He also agreed to allow a UN team into Venezuela to probe the issue.

Coverage of UN General Assembly compliments of Fly Jamaica and Star Party Rentals. 

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