Venezuelan Minister denies rocket launch site report
FOREIGN Minister, Mr. Clement Rohee, says Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Mr. Jose Vicente Rangel, has denied a report attributed to him in a local newspaper (not the Chronicle) that claimed he had objected to the proposed establishment of a rocket launch site in northwest Guyana. In a statement late yesterday, the Guyanese Foreign Minister said: "The Minister of Foreign Affairs wishes to clarify certain public statements which appeared recently in the local media with respect to the alleged Venezuelan opposition to the proposed establishment of a satellite launch site by Beal Aerospace in the national territory of Guyana. The Venezuela Foreign Minister, Mr. Jose Vicente Rangel is alleged to have said in a Venezuelan newspaper, "We have an objection to the intention of installing that aerospace base in the territory under reclamation". The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Clement Rohee wishes to inform that at the recently concluded European-Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he sought to have the statement clarified with his Venezuelan counterpart. In this regard, Minister Rangel emphasised that he never made any such statement to the Venezuelan media. At the same time, Minister Rangel did not convey to Minister Rohee any express opposition to the proposed venture. Minister Rohee took the opportunity to reiterate the proposal he had made to his Venezuelan counterpart while at the OAS (Organisation of American States) General Assembly in Guatemala to the effect that should Venezuela have any concerns with respect to the impact the venture might have on the environment, then such concerns could be discussed at the level of the Working Group on the Environment established under the aegis of the high level Guyana/Venezuela Bilateral Commission. Further, Minister Rohee reassured his Venezuelan counterpart that Guyana is committed to transparency and sharing of information with all its neighbours as the project evolves through its various stages."
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