No proposal for joint Essequibo exploitation -Rohee Stabroek News August 23, 2000 Foreign Minister, Clement Rohee yesterday denied that there was a proposal for Guyana to enter an agreement with Venezuela for joint exploitation in Essequibo and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for an environmental agreement with that country. He told a hastily called press conference at the GTV 11 studios, Homestretch Avenue, yesterday that he "wished to reiterate that the Government of Guyana has not received any proposal from the Government of Venezuela on the question of joint exploitation of some of the resources of the Essequibo." "I also wish to reiterate that there exists no Memorandum of Understanding for an environmental agreement with Venezuela." Rohee's comments were prompted by the editorial [please note: link provided by LOSP web site] in yesterday's Stabroek News which had warned against an agreement with Venezuela for the joint exploitation of some of the resources of Essequibo since it "could put a question mark over Guyana's territorial integrity." It also urged that there should "be no recurrence of the ambiguities which followed the signing of the much discussed Memorandum of Understanding for an environmental agreement". There is no MOU for an environmental agreement. Stabroek News regrets that error. However, the joint communique issued after President Janet Jagan's visit to Caracas in July 1998 said that "conscious of the extreme importance of sustainable management of the environment for economic and social development, both Presidents agreed that under the aegis of the McIntyre Process, Guyana and Venezuela will initiate negotiations leading to an Agreement on Environmental Matters." The danger of entering such an agreement had been pointed out in editorials in this newspaper and by several commentators. Rohee noted that "contrary to the impression conveyed by Stabroek News, the question of joint exploitation of resources on land or at sea in relation to Venezuela and Suriname respectively, has been around ever since the early years of Guyana's independence." He said that he could "publicly confirm that no such proposal or Memorandum of Understanding exists." Rohee travels to Caracas tomorrow at the invitation of his Venezuelan counterpart, Jose Vicente Rangel for a two-day visit to discuss the proposed agenda for a meeting in Brasilia between President Bharrat Jagdeo and President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. Both will be attending a summit of South American Presidents in the Brazilian capital. Rohee said that he and Rangel have agreed that they would discuss "setting the draft agenda for the meeting of the Presidents of Guyana and Venezuela in Brasilia; (the) arrangements for the meeting between the Foreign Ministers of Guyana and Venezuela and the United Nations Secretary General in New York next month during the United Nations General Assembly and a review of the progress of the Guyana-Venezuela High Level Bilateral Commission." The Foreign Minister stressed that joint exploitation "as far as the agreed agenda is concerned' was not up for discussions. Nor was he willing to disclose to reporters the issues Guyana would like to see on the agenda for the Brasilia and New York meetings. He explained that he would not like Rangel to be informed of Guyana's views through the media. Asked about a meeting with Suriname's recently inaugurated president, Ronald Venetiaan, Rohee said that the possibility for such a meeting exists but that it was a matter for the two presidents to decide. Relations with Suriname deteriorated recently over its eviction of the CGX oil rig from Guyana's waters on June 3. Fruitless talks between the two countries were suspended to allow the winning coalition at the recent Suriname polls to take office. On his views about the progress of the work of the Guyana-Venezuela High Level Bilateral Commission which the Venezuelan daily, El Nacional, said was going slowly, Rohee noted that the Commission was structured to provide for a number of sub-committees. He explained that the sub-committee on culture recently met in Georgetown; the one on marine resources met earlier in the year; and those on drugs and health have already met. Yet to meet were a number of other sub-committees including those dealing with political consultations and cooperation on the environment. Follow the goings-on in Guyana in Guyana Today