Venezuela still has time to change its mind about not appearing before the Inter-national Court of Justice (ICJ) to defend its claim to five-eighths of Guyana’s sovereign territory, Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge told the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Friday.
“Guyana sincerely hopes that it will change its mind. There is still time for it to do so,” he said.
Expressing gratitude to UN Secretary-General António Guterres for helping to resolve the longstanding matter between Guyana and Venezuela, Greenidge said he looks forward to a final judgment by the ICJ and the rule of law must prevail.
The controversy arose from Venezuela’s contention that the Arbitral Award of 1899 that settled the boundaries between the two countries is null and void.