The second meeting of the High Level Bilateral Commission (HLBC) between Guyana and Venezuela concluded yesterday with agreements to ease visa restrictions on Guyanese travelling to Venezuela and for closer collaboration between their defence forces and diplomatic corps.

These were among some of the agreements reached, which Foreign Minister Rudy Insanally who co-chaired the meeting with his Venezuela counterpart, Luis Alfonso Davila, said would contribute to the creation of mutual trust and confidence in building cooperation and eliminating the differences between the two countries.

The two-day meeting was held at the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was co-chaired by Insanally and Davila. During Davila's visit in November, the two ministers agreed to convene the just-concluded meeting to review the work of the sub-committees of the HLBC.

Speaking with reporters at a joint press conference at the FSI, Davila announced agreement between the two sides to establish a technical team to look at the feasibility of a road linking Guyana and Venezuela and to propose the best route for that road. He said that both countries had undertaken to bring the proposal to the meeting on the Integration of Regional Infrastructure of South America.

The road will be independent of the one linking Guyana and Brazil and its construction is being pursued in the context of the decision of the Heads of Government of South American presidents at their meeting in Brazil to cooperate in infrastructure development and integration.

There was also agreement to review the partial scope agreement the two sides signed in 1989 to ensure that it was compatible with the changes in international trade and to put in place measures to strengthen the relations between the two sectors before the end of June. To this end, Davila said, Venezuela would be providing within two weeks a list of products to be added to those already in the partial scope agreement.

He also said that there was agreement for an exhibition of Guyanese art to be mounted in Caracas some time between June-July and for Guyana to study a proposed programme of cultural exchanges that would take place over a period of two to three years.

There were also agreements related to air transport, frequency management and sea transport, and for the extradition of prisoners. A draft agreement is to be presented by Venezuela for Guyana's consideration and is to include the category of criminal activities to be covered by it.

In terms of sea transport, Davila offered for Guyana's consideration participation by Guyana in a service offered its autonomous naval agency OCAMAR, which facilitates the transportation of goods between Venezuela and some CARICOM states.

Commenting on the cooperation between the armed forces of Guyana and Venezuela, Davila explained that this could take form of exchanges between the Foreign Service Institutes of the two countries including the exchange of students. He said that the student exchange could redound to the benefit of both countries. Also, he said that Venezuela would be taking advantage of Guyana's experience in chairing the Group-77 and China, which Venezuela now chairs, adding that Insanally had already been approached for assistance.

Insanally, in his comments about the proposed collaboration said that with Guyana having one foot in the Caribbean and the other in South America, it was important it study in Spanish to profit from what its neighbours to the South had to offer.

About the cooperation between the armed forces, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister said that this could take the form of training and exchange of intelligence.

Commenting on the issue, Insanally said that in today's world the threat to national security came in many forms - trans-border crime, the traffic in drugs and the traffic in arms - and that it was in the interest of the two countries for the armed forces and security agencies to cooperate to contain these threats.

He said too that he agreed with Davila that the new concept of the modern army was not in making war, but in making peace and development and that Guyana was interested in taking up places at a Venezuelan institute offering courses in maritime affairs.

Among the members of the Guyana team at the meeting were Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Elisabeth Harper; Ambassador to Venezuela, Bayney Karran; Ambassadors Donald Abrams and Rudy Collins and Col Lennox Wilson, non-resident military attaché to Venezuela.

The Venezuelan delegation included its ambassador to Guyana Jean-Francois Pulvenis; Gerardo Fernandez Lopez, vice-minister Planning and Services; Ambassador Francisco Velez; director-general of International Political Affairs and Brigadier General Alfonso Nunez, director-general of Sovereignty, Limits and Border Issues and Marcos Ferreira Torres, director-general, Directorate of Foreigners Identification and Control of the Venezuelan Ministry of Home Affairs and Justice.