President expresses displeasure at Venezuela's actions New ambassador accredited Stabroek News December 28, 2000 The commitment of the Guyana and Venezuelan governments to the use of the United Nations' Good Officer process to identify a mechanism for peacefully settling the border controversy was restated yesterday by President Bharrat Jagdeo and Venezuela's ambassador to Guyana, Jean-Francois Pulvenis. But President Jagdeo expressed his government's concern that some of Venezuela's actions "have sought to impede our right to economic development of a significant portion of our territory," though they shared a common commitment to the goals of poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Presenting his credentials to President Jagdeo at the Office of the President, Ambassador Pulvenis stressed his government's full commitment "to find a satisfactory solution for a practical settlement of the controversy in the framework of the Geneva Agreement, through the good offices of the Secretary General of the United Nations. "We cannot ignore the territorial controversy between our two nations or belittle its practical consequences. But we may be satisfied with the peaceful and indeed exemplary manner [with which] we have been dealing with it, in stark contrast with the multiplicity of conflicts plaguing the international society that your Excellency denounced in your speech to the UN General Assembly in 1999." He noted too that history and geography had made neighbours of Guyana and Venezuela and that a bond that nature could not be broken However, he noted "it is in the mutual interest of our peoples that the circumstances that necessarily flow from this situation be faced squarely and dealt with in a peaceful, constructive and efficient manner, in full respect of international law, particularly the well-established principle of good neighbourliness." Ambassador Pulvenis observed that the interaction between the two countries at various levels as well as the commonality of their interests, concerns and positions of Guyana and Venezuela "with respect to many issues, particularly when addressing the challenges we face in our quest for sustainable development" offer many opportunities for enhancing the cooperation between them. He noted too the replacement of the Guyana-Venezuela Joint Commission with the High Level Bilateral Commission, which he described as "more structured and more diversified, with its Sub-Committees and the responsibilities assigned to them in various fields, such as trade, environment, hydrobiological resources, education and culture." Ambassador Pulvenis promised that the role of his embassy would be to act "both as a bridge and as a catalyst. As a bridge, to ensure that, through more dialogue, more sharing, any possibility of mutual ignorance, distrust or misunderstanding is dissipated. As a catalyst, to stimulate and multiply contacts between all interested parties and stakeholders of the two nations; to help overcoming hindrances and difficulties; to promote a more dynamic cooperation and integration, making good use of the richness and diversity of our respective heritage and experience, and to foster any agreement or arrangement identified as mutually beneficial. Responding to the Venezuelan envoy's presentation, President Jagdeo noted that the controversy arising from Venezuela's repudiation of the 1899 Arbitral Award as being a full, final and perfect settlement, "continues to dominate our relations and we must seek its satisfactory solution." But he noted the collaboration between the two countries in multilateral fora such as the Treaty for Amazonian Cooperation, the Association of Caribbean States, the Non-Aligned Movement, the United Nations and the Group of 77 and China. This, President Jagdeo said, had to be translated into "a mutual commitment for us to work towards an enhanced relationship of collaboration and cooperation at the bilateral level. "Guyana remains committed to the Good Officer Process of the United Nations Secretary General in its quest for a peaceful resolution of the controversy. For this process to be effective, we must ensure that the right climate is created and maintained. For its part, Guyana is prepared to continue to work towards this end." In this regard he mentioned Venezuela's action in discouraging investment in the Essequibo, which he said was a concern and a disappointment to Guyana which has embarked on a policy of attracting investment, both local and foreign. "It is a daunting task for small developing countries like Guyana and our ultimate success--the raising of the standard of living and quality of life of our people--depends as much on our efforts as on the cooperation received from other countries including our neighbours." That apart, President Jagdeo praised the "efforts over recent years to improve functional cooperation between our two countries." "President [Hugo] Chavez and I agreed when we met in Brasilia in September this year, that we should intensify action in this area under the aegis of the High Level Bilateral Commission to ensure that it becomes the mechanism for fostering a wider ranging and integral relationship between Guyana and Venezuela." He said that he hoped that the collaborative agreement between the Private Sector Commission and DEDECAMARAS of Venezuela would be fully utilised as the basis for exploring the largely untapped potential and opportunities for trade and investment. Ambassador Pulvenis, 51, succeeds Ambassador Hector Azocar who was reassigned to Port-of-Spain earlier this year. He headed the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry's Land and Maritime Boundaries Directorate since 1988 and before that was assistant director of the Boundaries General Directorate between 1982 and 1988. He was head of the Venezuelan delegation to the Preparatory Commission for the International; Sea-Bed Authority and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Before that he served on the Venezuelan delegation to the Third United Nations Law of the Sea Conference between 1974-82. Ambassador Pulvenis received his university education at the University of Nice where he read Modern Literature and Law. He is fluent in French, Spanish and English. Follow the goings-on in Guyana in Guyana Today